Nothing Worth Having
by CaliforniaCougar
Summary: 10 years after the death of Naraku and 8 years after the death of Inuyasha, Kagome goes to the Castle of the West in search of happiness. What she gets is an assassination attempt, a plot to destroy the Western Lands, and... romance? One thing is for sure: nothing worth having ever comes easy. SessKag
1. Chapter 1: Nothing Worth Having

**Nothing Worth Having**

"I can't stand you sometimes! Just leave me alone. You always do anyway!" The sound of yelling ripped through the calm of an afternoon in Inuyasha's Village, a peaceful settlement of Edo, Japan.

Nosy villagers, spoiled by years of little turmoil and ample boredom (courtesy of their very demon protectors), poked their heads out of their huts to watch the day's entertainment unfold before them. Careful not to be spotted by the source of such irritation, they all tracked Rin's furiously bobbing head as she stormed out of the hut she shared with Kagome, the former village miko, and off into Inuyasha's Forest. Not long after, a pale, almost godlike, figure stepped out through said hut and stared off in the direction Rin had gone. His long white hair cascaded behind him and swayed gently in the afternoon breeze, belying the tension that coursed through him. Sesshomaru's head whipped around and his eyes narrowed ever so slightly, as if daring the villagers to say anything about the scene they had just witnessed.

There was a time when that gaze would have sent dozens of villagers screaming for their lives, but 10 years had passed since Naraku had been defeated, and they simply no longer feared him as they once did. What was once a paralyzing fear had now settled into a… very healthy respect for the brother of Inuyasha, their village's namesake. However, none would wish to be caught staring, so in an instant, every nosy set of eyes had retreated into the safety of their homes.

Sesshomaru turned back towards the hot smell of Rin's tears, irritated that he felt so moved by something so irrational as the girl's dire mood swings. Rin, Sesshomaru, and Kagome had been having a normal conversation over the midday meal, and he had been a silent observer, as usual, only interjecting every so often with a probing question or two about Rin's studies.

They had discovered about a year after Naraku's death that Rin was a miko (albeit not nearly as strong as Kagome or Kikyo had ever been), so she and Kagome had been training together for a time with Kaede. After the old woman had finally passed, Kagome had taken over the position of village miko for a time, but eventually she had conceded the position to a more formally trained miko that had happened upon the village in recent years. She was still determined to uphold Rin's training however, so they were currently studying the art of healing (including the properties of nearly a hundred or so plants) in addition to her classes in the village school.

Kagome had started the small school with only a handful of village children a few months after Naraku's death, and it had grown to the size of 30 children, no small feat for a relatively insignificant human village. The school was open to girls as well as boys, which, as he had pointed out many times before to the strange miko, was highly unusual for this time. As Kagome was wont to doing, however, she would merely smile freely up at him and remind him that she was not of this time, and she wanted better for the girls of her village. Indeed, it was one of the only reasons he had taken Kaede's suggestion to leave Rin in the village with her fellow humans until Rin was better able to choose her path. As much as he appreciated Rin's carefree nature, it pained Sesshomaru to think that he had allowed his ward to wallow in ignorance for so long (not that he would ever admit such things out loud, as it would seem… undignified). If she chose to remain his ward, he would see to it that she was the most educated human in his court.

It was not that he feared her tarnishing his reputation. After all, what did he care for the opinions of fools? None of those cowards would dare to challenge the great Lord of the West, especially since his defeat of Naraku and subsequent transformation into a true Daiyoukai. Briefly, Sesshomaru closed his eyes and allowed himself to bask in the glory of that moment. The sheer power he had felt exploding from his arm had surprised even him, especially when his arm had burst forth out of the once-empty sleeve along with the elegantly sinister beauty that was Bakusaiga. As if it knew its master's thoughts, the sword pulsed at his side, drawing Sesshomaru out of his memories and back to the troubling matter at hand. Releasing an almost imperceptible sigh, he spoke without turning to look at the miko he knew had come to stand at his side.

"She is becoming more defiant every time I return. I blame you."

"She is her father's daughter. I blame you." Kagome shot back. Sesshomaru gave his equivalent of a scowl (which amounted to nothing more than a brief tightening of the lips), but still the miko continued on with her impertinent train of thought. "It doesn't help that she's, well, a full-grown woman now Sesshomaru. If we hadn't discovered her miko powers, she would probably already have a husband and a family by now. As it is, you're the only one she ever chatters about. It's just as well, for the village men here still think her a bit odd and tend to stay away from her."

Not dwelling on the thought of Rin getting married, and all the more complicated things that came along with that, Sesshomaru replied, "she used to follow me without question. Now she argues and whines like a willful pup every time I must depart. It is… most irritating."

Kagome's eyes softened as she spoke her next words. "She is still that little girl that loves you and worships the ground you walk on. When humans are this age, their hormones- errr- _energies_ just tend to become harder to control for a time. She adores you as any daughter would, but she cannot help but feel angry when you leave. In a few hours, she'll regret her words and wish them unsaid. It is the way of the young."

Here, her voice grew more distant as she thought of her not-so-little Shippo who was away at kitsune school where he had been perfecting his craft for the past 5 years. Her heart clenched as she thought about the children she could have had, _should_ have had with Inuyasha. But alas, she had been too stupid, too stuck in her modern sensibilities. After Naraku died, she and Inuyasha had finally confessed their love to each other and had enjoyed 2 blissful years of marriage. She had kept insisting that the timing just wasn't right, that they still had too much to rebuild after Naraku and the destruction of the Shikon No Tama, that she was too young for children.

"What a fool I was," thought Kagome bitterly. It was a few days after they had celebrated their second year of marriage…

Inuyasha had scoffed and proclaimed it a silly human custom to celebrate such small (by demon standards) milestones, but he hadn't been able to deny her such a small happiness. In truth, had probably enjoyed the attention more than he had let on, reveling in every reminder that he had truly found a village and (more importantly) a pack that did more than tolerate his presence. They had been walking down to the fields with Rin (only 10 at the time, with much to learn still about the properties of the flowers she loved so much) to collect herbs for Kaede. The sun was only partially responsible for the small blush that had played across Kagome's cheeks, and the light breeze had been a gentle caress on the backs of their entwined hands as they watched Rin bounce happily from bloom to bloom and cackle gleefully with pure joy as only a child can. Suddenly, a shadow had passed over Inuyasha's face as his hand dropped hers and pulled out the Tessaiga faster than she could blink. Before she could even open her mouth to get out Rin's name, Inuyasha had already scooped the girl up and placed her and Kagome behind him.

"What the hell do you want, and why are you in my forest?" Inuyasha had yelled in his typical blunt fashion. The two menacing figures had turned towards them and said nothing as they advanced. Inuyasha had snorted and slashed the Tessaiga downward, sending a familiar wave of energy hurtling through the air at the intruders. When the dust cleared however, the tell-tale glow of a barrier had enshrined the two intruders, and it became clear in that moment that at least one of them was a skilled miko. Kagome, for some reason, had not brought her bow with her that day (a mistake that still tore at her heart), and could only stand back helplessly as they advanced.

"My lady!" the shorter of the two women had called out to her, "hurry, come with us! We shall not allow this foul abomination to bring harm upon ye! We offer ye and the girl our protection!" Kagome remembered only too well how she had shivered at the hate bubbling within the taller miko's eyes when they landed upon her mating mark upon her shoulder. The priestess had almost hissed as she recoiled in horror.

"Sister Chiyoko!" The taller one had exclaimed in hushed tones. "She bears the mark of the disgusting hanyou!"

"I-Impossible!" Chiyoko had muttered. "No miko would willingly lay with one of _their_ kind." The cruel mouth had twisted with unbridled hatred. "He must have violated her and begot that child against her will." Having decided Inuyasha's crime and punishment, the miko had proceeded to call out to Kagome once more. "My lady, we shall avenge your fallen honor and slay the beast that has sullied ye so." Lowering her voice once more to speak to her sister "the child, I'm afraid, will have to die as well, Leiko. We shall put that miserable creature out of her misery. Her demon blood shall poison her no longer."

"I heard that!" Inuyasha had screamed. "Let's get a few things straight! One-" he had swung the Tessaiga at them again, only to be blocked effortlessly, "I am NOT a rapist! Kagome is my mate. Two-" he had slashed at them with his claws, tearing Leiko's rosary apart as they rolled out of his reach, "the only people dying here today ARE YOU TWO!" With that fierce proclamation, Tessaiga had glowed red as it crushed the miko's barrier. As the sword's energy began crashing down upon them, Chiyoko had rightly recognized their impending death. Snarling in the knowledge of their defeat, she had pulled a dagger from her boot and thrown it at Inuyasha's chest. Inuyasha had spun away from it, the tip of the blade barely grazing his left shoulder. She remembered feeling so relieved and shaken up that the memory of that bitch's dying smirk had been quickly pushed aside. The wound itself had closed over within seconds, so she had taken Inuyasha at his word when he had scoffed at her concern over a simple scratch. She wished now that she had paid more attention to the twisting feeling in her gut as they had embraced before returning to the village with a visibly upset Rin.

Later that night, Kagome had awoken to the feeling of being drenched in sweat. It had taken her a few seconds to realize that it was Inuyasha, and not her, whose body felt like it was engulfed in flames. With a nervous cry, she had shaken Inuyasha so violently that even Shippo and Rin had woken up from their side of the large futon they had all shared back then. Inuyasha had opened his eyes slowly, but it seemed as if even that small effort pained him, and his eyes had been the palest she had ever seen them, almost more of yellow than the darker color of honey she knew and loved for so long. With tears in her eyes, Kagome had sent Shippo to run and wake Kaede, for she had rightly feared the worst: poison.

"Aye child, I am afraid Inuyasha has been poisoned. Tis a miko's curse to be sure, but I cannot tell which spell had been used. I am afraid I can only guess which herbs to use," Kaede had told her regretfully. Kagome had not been able to say anything, she had merely squeezed Inuyasha's hand tighter, alarmed when he had barely been able to give her an answering twitch of his claws. Kaede shook her head sympathetically, and had pulled Rin aside to the door of the hut.

"Child, I need ye to run and wake Sango and Miroku. Tell them what has happened, and tell them that they must ride quickly to fetch Sesshomaru." Kaede had said no more as Rin had run to do as she had been told, but Kagome had known why they might need Sesshomaru.

"Tenseiga… Hold on Inuyasha. Sesshomaru will be here soon enough. You just have to hold on for me, my love," Kagome had not dared voice her fears, but instead had begun praying vigorously to the Kamis that Inuyasha would last long enough that Sesshomaru could still save him.

He had been stuck in that agonizing state for almost three days before Kagome could tell that he was taking a turn for the worse. He had begun waking up moaning and shouting out unintelligible words every half hour or so, and his eyes had seemed to see yet not see what was in front of him. He had grown so weak that he could not even take Kaede's medicinal concoctions without someone holding him up and another forcing it down his mouth while rubbing his throat to force his body to automatically swallow it. Not that any of the medicines they had given him had done much good. By nightfall of the third day, he had begun panting as his lungs tried desperately to suck in enough air. She still had nightmares about how he had looked in those last few moments: his silver hair dull and listless, cracked lips parted in pain, with several claws broken from gripping the floor as the pain and fever wracked his body. Just as she had begun to feel the slight brush of Sesshomaru's aura at the edge of her conscious, Inuyasha's eyes had flown open and he had seemed to focus for the first time since the whole ordeal had begun.

He had looked straight at her with a soul-piercing gaze and had managed to utter only a single word, "Ka-kag-me." With that, his strength and breath had seemed to slip away like sand through her fingers, and his clawed hand had grown limp within her clutches.

"I-Inuyasha?" She had pleaded with him, begging him mentally not to leave her, but she dared not voice her desires out loud, for she had already known the truth in his slack arm, but she had not wanted to frighten the children. Wild-eyed and growing more desperate with each passing moment, Kagome had sprinted out of the hut, awaiting Sesshomaru's ever-growing presence. In the distance, she had barely been able to make out the gleaming white fur of an unnaturally large dog with crimson eyes, and she had fought the urge to run and meet him, for she'd known that such a foolish action would have only slowed the Western Lord down, and time had been of the essence.

With a grace unmatched by any other, he had transformed in mid leap and landed in his more humanoid form, not even breaking his stride as he had stood outside the hut and sniffed what lay inside. The tell-tale stench of death must have already begun settling in the air, for he had pulled Tenseiga out without any prompting from Kagome or Kaede. As he stepped inside, Kagome had followed him in, anxiously waiting for Sesshomaru to slash at the demons of death that had come for Inuyasha's soul. When she had heard the tiniest of inhales from him, she had snapped her gaze away from Inuyasha's body and onto the Tenseiga which had yet to move from Sesshomaru's side.

"Why aren't you doing anything?! Kill them!" Kagome had nearly yelled at him, surprising everyone in the hut for her daring. At that point in time, Sesshomaru had still been their enemy for longer time than he had been an ally, and it was yet unwise to disrespect the feared Western Lord. But Kagome had been so blinded with grief that none could have faulted her for her impatience not even the cold Lord Sesshomaru.

"Miko. This Sesshomaru cannot see the death demons to kill them. Tenseiga shows me nothing," his voice had been soft and almost cruel in its lack of emotion. "It is as if… his soul has vanished completely. What manner of poison was this?" This, he had directed at Kaede, who had still been in shock that she had outlived not only her sister Kikyo, but now Inuyasha as well, and she had stumbled over her reply that it was an unknown miko's curse that had caused all this.

Sesshomaru's eyes had narrowed, and he had sheathed Tenseiga solemnly. Suddenly, it was as if his armor had grown tenfold in weight, and his shoulders had sagged briefly with the realization that his brother, the last of his blood, was gone from this world. With the same emotionless tone, he had proceeded to explain that there was only one miko's curse that could have dissolved a soul like this: Souruītā, or Soul Eater. Because those damned mikos had essentially "eaten" his soul with their curse, there had been nothing for Sesshomaru to revive. They had held the funeral a few days later, but Kagome could barely remember anything other than the pervasive feeling of numbness that had filled her up for months on end. She had managed to put on a brave face during the day, but at night, the exhaustion of pretending would set in, and she would collapse onto the futon, sobbing inconsolably into one of Inuyasha's spare haoris. The entire village had been forced to walk on eggshells around her, for even the slightest mention of his name used to send her spiraling into a fit of depression. Those had been dark times, and the only thing that had saved her was the unrelenting love of her friends and her work at the village school.

"Well," Kagome thought wryly, "that, and Sesshomaru." It had been Sesshomaru that had finally dragged her out of her hut in the days following the funeral. She had barricaded herself in with her powers, ignoring Shippo's and Rin's pleas for her to come out because everyone was worried for her. Sango and Miroku had even resorted to taking turns standing watch outside the door in case she finally relented. This had gone on for almost a week, when Sesshomaru had come for one of his regular visits to Rin.

The poor girl had run up to him shouting and sobbing "Sesshomaru-sama, Sesshomaru-sama! Kagome-sama is hurt-and-we-don't-know-what-to-do! Can-you-help-her-please?" Sesshomaru's eyes had narrowed in silent question, and Rin had gone on to explain that the injury was to her heart and not her body. Still not saying a word, he had turned towards the direction of the miko's hut.

Upon arriving, he had stood at the doorway and called to her, "Miko. Cease this foolishness at once." She had not replied. In fact, she distinctly remembered her barrier flaring out in a non-verbal signal to get the hell out. Needless to say, Sesshomaru had not been impressed with her tantrum. The words "petulant" and "child" had been thrown around, but she had been too deep in the clutches of her despair for his insults to rile her up as they normally would have. With an almost imperceptible sigh, he had walked through her barrier as if the burn of her powers was a mere annoyance (which, in reality, it probably was. Her powers had never truly affected him anyway, and even less so after having been his ally for so long). At the sight of him, her barrier had melted away, seeming to admit defeat. He had found her curled up in the corner of the hut with the familiar fire-rat red of Inuyasha's haori wrapped around her shoulders and a large photo album in her lap.

She had stared up at him with bloodshot eyes and ratty, tangled hair. She waited for him to lecture her about being weak and pathetic in her mourning, but he had surprisingly said nothing. He had merely stared at her for what felt like ages before extending a single clawed hand. Numbly, she had taken it, not even thinking about refusing. Sesshomaru's silent strength was a balm to her grieving soul, and she had taken solace in not having to think but instead blindly following his quiet commands. He had led her outside and handed her over to the worried demon slayer with an order to escort Kagome to the nearby springs to be cleaned up. Sango had gladly obliged, and had chattered nervously to her the whole time, though Kagome had said nothing in reply.

Upon their return, Sango had been surprised to find that Sesshomaru had ordered the children to start a fire and begin cooking the deer he had caught and skinned while they were away. A plate had been placed in front of Kagome, and though she had stared disinterestedly at the sizzling meat, Sesshomaru had given her a stern look that brooked no dissent on the matter, and she had begun to mechanically rip off pieces of it and chewing it. Before she had even realized it, the plate was gone, and Sesshomaru had tilted his head in silent approval. He had then told the children to say their goodbyes to Kagome, that they would be spending the night with Kaede. They had protested at first, but a stern look had silenced their rebellion with ease. They had both hugged her tightly and given her a gentle kiss on the cheek, which she had only half-heartedly returned. After everyone had left, only Sesshomaru had stayed behind. Still, he said nothing.

As she lay down on her futon and her eyes had begun to feel heavier and heavier, she could see Sesshomaru on the edge of her periphery. He had folded his legs beneath him and sat gracefully in the corner staring out the door. Just before sleep had claimed her, she found herself breaking her week-long silence to ask a single question.

"Why him, Sesshomaru?" The words stuck in her throat as the too-fresh grief had seemed to strangle had said nothing at first, but then, so softly that she had strained to hear him…

"I do not know." Somehow, the words that should have frustrated her had comforted her immensely, for even blinded by despair, she could hear in them the faintest tinge of regret. And in that moment, she had known that she was not alone in her grief.


	2. Chapter 2: The Hands of Time

**Chapter 2: The Hands of Time**

Ever since that night, Sesshomaru had slowly pushed Kagome back into the land of the living. He had constantly been there, hovering over her like a feeble pup (which at the time had not been far from the truth). He had forced her to eat at every meal, made her bathe with Sango every morning, and had even taken to walking with her every night around the village. Neither of them had ever really said much on their walks, but his mere presence had become a source of comfort in her time of grief. Maybe it was the powerful aura or the inhumanly beautiful hair or the familial connection, but she had clung desperately to the last living connection she had with Inuyasha. Eventually, after several weeks under Sesshomaru's vigilance, she had been able to get through the day without being prompted by the Western Lord. It was only after he was satisfied that Kagome would not revert to her "foolish ways," as he so generously put it, that Sesshomaru had returned to his lands.

Kagome smiled to think at how gentle and almost… doting Sesshomaru had been. There were many that still spoke of the Western Lord's cold and heartless nature in hushed tones, but she, and those who truly knew him, knew better than to believe the legends. Sesshomaru was reserved, yes, but he had proven himself time and time again to be an honorable demon. He had revived Rin, a poor orphan (and very much human) girl, from the dead. He had not killed his retainer Jaken after centuries of putting up with the loud-mouthed toad (which in and of itself was a testament to his self-control). He had taken allies (something he had never had the need for before) in order to defeat an evil that had truly not posed a legitimate threat to him. He had taken his younger brother under his wing (although to the untrained eye, their constant battles had been a sign of animosity, Kagome knew that Sesshomaru had only been strengthening Inuyasha, shaping him into the fearsome warrior that had been integral part of taking down Naraku). He had taken in a pack that wasn't his after his brother's death simply because it was the honorable thing to do. Kagome could think of no better leader for the Western lands, for Sesshomaru cared not for false power or pretty words. He simply protected what was his (his lands and those beneath his rule) and lived up to the name the "Killing Perfection." There was something… genuinely admirable about the towering youkai lord.

Now, however, it seemed that the Killing Perfection had been stumped by something that could not be solved with murder or strength: raising a human daughter. She fought back a snicker to see him look so utterly befuddled and frustrated at Rin's outburst. To be sure, he didn't look any different than normal, but Kagome had gotten better at reading Sesshomaru over the years, and she could detect the most minute changes in his demeanor: the slightly furrowed eyebrows, the tiniest twitch of his claws, the ramrod straight shoulders. Every part of his inuyoukai side was no doubt urging him to run after the child and put her into place for her defiance of the alpha, but he did nothing. In fact, he looked uncharacteristically lost and, dare she say it, helpless in the face of such irrational disobedience that he had almost certainly never experienced before. She fought back a giggle as she struggled to regain her composure. At the stifled sound of amusement, Sesshomaru turned his irritation away from Rin and onto Kagome.

"And what, Miko, is so amusing?" the Western Lord snapped at her. She could almost see the fur of his mokomoko on his shoulder bristling with agitation at being so openly mocked.

"It's almost comical really," Kagome teased, "the great Western Lord at a loss about how to handle a slip of a human girl with crazy teenage hormones." With that, she burst into peals of unrestrained laughter, inky black strands of hair falling out of its ties and shaking gleefully around her tanned face. Sesshomaru's irritation grew, but it had been years since he had seen the miko this freely amused, and he could not bring himself to feel as outraged as he should have. She could not go unpunished, however, and his eyes began to take on a faintly devious spark. Kagome's laughter soon died upon seeing that gleam, and she shivered unconsciously. On anyone else, such a look might have been endearing, but on Sesshomaru… well let's just say she was glad that they were somewhat pack. He could be downright scary sometimes.

"Hehe, did I say that out loud? Oops! Ummm I should go check on Rin and get some herbs from the forest, I think we're running a little low on… something. Gotta go!" Kagome took off hurriedly in the direction that Rin had stormed away, all the while knowing that it was useless to run since she could never hope to beat his speed. She pumped her arms quickly, her legs and lungs burning with fatigue and pieces of her hair sticking to her face with sweat.

Sesshomaru nearly scoffed at her feeble attempts to avoid the consequences of her careless remarks. It had been a while since he had indulged in a good chase, however, and he could feel the adrenaline spiking in his body as his inner demon's interest was piqued. He took to the air in a single bound, pausing on the tallest treetop and inhaling deeply, searching for the unique scent of his prey. He allowed himself the luxury of a small smirk as he locked in on the combination of Sakurasou flowers and the faint hint of the herbs she worked with day in and day out. Too fast for the human eye to follow, Sesshomaru sped downward and cut the miko off as she came into the clearing of the Goshinboku.

"Going somewhere miko?" His eyes seemed to bore into Kagome's soul, and she felt her reiki tingle and rise to the challenge that his overpowering youki was putting out there. She straightened up to her full height and rose her chin defiantly, knowing that it would piss off his demon instincts even more to be challenged so brazenly. And her efforts were successful, because she almost swore she heard a low growl slip out as he flashed her a single, deadly fang.

"Do not challenge me miko. You WILL lose." His aura flared, and although his voice sounded calm, Kagome could see the tint of red begin to bleed into edges of his eyes. She fought back a shiver as her pride refused to allow her to submit.

With a calm she hardly knew she possessed, she taunted him "I wouldn't be so sure of that. I heard you've been getting," she paused, and looked him up and down with a teasing look, "soft in your old age Sesshomaru." He growled more openly this time, and she delighted in seeing him so uncharacteristically open. She continued with her insults, knowing that she would most likely never be able to get this chance again. "I dare say you've become more of a puppy than the great Dog of the West." With that final parting shot, she took off running again and fired a small orb of reiki over her shoulder in his direction, positively giggling the entire way.

Taken aback by her newfound brazenness, Sesshomaru nearly forgot to move out of the way of the orb, and he could feel the warmth of her energy as it streaked past his face. He chased after her, following her new trail until it suspiciously disappeared. Kagome giggled from her hiding place at the look of confusion that briefly passed across his stony face. Her hastily erected barrier hid her scent, but it did not block sound. The Western Lord was upon her in an instant, her barrier melting away as it always did in his presence. He had never been a threat to her (she didn't count the very first time they met, they had been strangers then) and her powers had always instinctively submitted to him.

He towered over her, his eyes glowing hotly and more darkly than she had ever seen them. She, on the other hand, just smiled sweetly up at him, batting her eyelashes in mock innocence. He simply growled before spinning on one heel and walking away, all the while muttering something that sounded suspiciously like "insufferable human women" and "both more trouble than they're worth." Kagome merely laughed and ran to catch up with the long strides of the infuriated Western Lord. With a true smile this time, she reached out and briefly touched his shoulder with her head tilted away from him, baring her neck in a sign of apology and deference. He said nothing, but she could feel him relax beneath her fingers as her silent gesture appeased his riled demon.

"All jokes aside, you do realize that Rin still loves you very much right? She doesn't mean to be defiant, but she just misses you and hates it when you leave. After every visit, she spends days moping around and pining for your next return" Kagome said quietly.

"I visit her regularly. My duties to my lands do not permit me to be here any more often. I see to it that she has what she needs. It should be enough." the inuyoukai replied.

"Perhaps when she was a child, it was enough. But she is older now, and she needs a father-figure in her life." Kagome explained patiently. "When you first left her here, everything was a novel experience. She had never lived with humans before, and she had so much to learn from her time in the village. It is why Kaede suggested this arrangement in the first place. Perhaps it is time that you let her decide what path she wants to take."

"She is too young. She is still just a pup."

"Sesshomaru, she is 18!" Kagome shot back. "She's practically an old spinster by this time's standards, and even in MY time, she would have been considered an adult." He said nothing in reply, but Kagome could tell he was pondering her words. She added "You have to remember that humans have less time than demons." Here, her voice cracked, "before you know it, she will be gone." Kagome's eyes watered up, and any fool with half a brain could tell that she was talking about Inuyasha. Sesshomaru fought the urge to let out an undignified sigh, opting instead to briefly rest a clawed hand upon her shoulder before pulling away. Kagome smiled tearfully at the gesture of comfort. By Sesshomaru standards, that was as good as an all-out hug.

"I will speak with Rin," was all he said. What he did NOT say was that her words had left him feeling… disturbed at the thought of a life without Rin being in it. Throughout the years, she had been killed and kidnapped and put in danger too many times for him to count. Each time, though her had been confident in his abilities to rescue her from danger, he had been forced to deal with the strange feeling of fear that had run through him. The great Lord Sesshomaru of the Western Lands had never felt fear before he met Rin, and although it burned him to admit it, he knew that his father Inu No Taisho had been right all those years ago when he had asked him "do you have someone to protect, Sesshomaru?" Caring for Rin had made him more vulnerable, but without his affection for her, he would never have realized his true potential as a DaiYoukai, would never have regrown his arm, and would never have created the Bakusaiga. But even a DaiYoukai cannot fully stop the cold hand of Death from claiming its victim. Before he knew it, Rin would grow older and leave him forever (and that was assuming that she did not find a husband to marry before then). In that moment, Sesshomaru found himself hoping that Rin would choose to leave with him, though he knew he would never stoop so low as to ask her outright. It was one thing to admit to himself that he loved the girl, but quite another to humiliate himself by admitting such a thing out loud.

As Sesshomaru pondered his situation, Kagome was lost in thoughts of her own. She found herself thinking about how her life would have been different if Inuyasha had not died. She should have been running after a little silver-haired, dog-eared brat, with its mother's heart and its father's give-a-damn attitude. She should have been curled up every night with the love of her life as she watched him grow into the kind man and amazing father she knew deep down that he always wanted to be. It just wasn't fair. It was like everyone else had gotten their happy ending except for her.

"But none of that matters now," Kagome thought to herself. "I had three years with the love of my life, which is more than most people get. I will die one day and be reunited with him once again." If Sesshomaru noticed the salt mixing with the scent of Sakurasou, he didn't say a word.


	3. Chapter 3: The Decision

**Chapter 3: The Decision**

They found Rin in a nearby clearing talking to Sesshomaru's two-headed dragon, Ah-Un. Her quiet words of affection were interspersed with sniffles that belied the anger she had shown just a few minutes ago when yelling at her lord.

Sesshomaru would never admit to it, but the sound and smell of her fading tears did prod at his stoic heart. He never had been comfortable with the girl's sadness, and he quickly moved to rectify the issue.

"Rin," Sesshomaru's deep voice interrupted the girl's ramblings, and both she and Ah-Un turned their heads to look at their Lord. She set her chin stubbornly, but did not dare lash out at him verbally once again. "It has been brought to this Sesshomaru's attention that you have come of age by human standards, and as such are entitled to make your own decisions. Ah-Un and I will depart in exactly an hour."

With those few words, he turned on his heel and walked to the base of the nearest tree to sit and wait. Rin stared at him for a second in disbelief before squealing in girlish pleasure as she came to understand the familiar choice that he was finally offering her again: to stay or to follow. Though she knew in her heart that her lord would not be unhappy if she were to follow him once more, she knew that he was much too honorable and proud of a youkai to influence her decision one way or the other.

Just as he had left it up to her when he first rescued her from the wolves, so too did he place her destiny in her own hands now. Life with her lord would not be easy, she knew, but it was the only life for her. She ran over to him and, fighting the urge to hug him as she had when she was a child, bowed more deeply than she ever had before.

"I will return shortly my lord," she said firmly. For a moment, Sesshomaru was struck by how much she had matured during her stay with the peculiar miko and her just-as-strange pack of friends. To a demon like him, the years it had taken to transform his young ward into a woman had seemed to last no longer than the blink of his eyes. A foreign feeling spread through his chest as he thought to himself just how many more blinks it would be before she was graying and old.

Lost in his thoughts, he almost missed her bolting out of the clearing giggling in glee as she hurried away to gather her few prized possessions for her new journey. Without realizing it, the corners of his lips briefly curled into the smallest of smiles before returning to their neutral position.

But it was too late, for Kagome had already seen the hint of happiness that escaped the normally cold demon, and she felt her own eyes water up at the obvious affection that Sesshomaru held for Rin. Her joy at seeing the love between them was short-lived however, and she heaved a weary sigh as she realized that Rin's departure meant she would be all alone in the village now.

Kaede had passed away almost seven years ago. Sango and Miroku had moved out the following year to rebuild the demon slayers' village with their adorable twin girls Aiko and Akemi, their son Haru, and Sango's brother Kohaku. Shippo was still training at the kitsune school in his quest to become a nine-tailed kitsune and make both his deceased parents and his adoptive mother, Kagome, proud. She also had not been the head miko for almost three years now, and another village girl had taken up the position of head school-teacher just last year. Really and truly, with Inuyasha dead and Rin about to leave her, there was little reason for Kagome to stay in Edo.

Decision made, she straightened up her slouching shoulders in determination as she announced abruptly, "I'm coming with you."

Sesshomaru said nothing, but merely raised one eyebrow in her direction, the unasked question hanging in the still afternoon air.

Kagome offered up a quiet explanation. "There is nothing for me here anymore. I will leave word with the head miko to inform my friends and Shippo of my new whereabouts." Here, Kagome hesitated in a decidedly un-Kagome fashion. "That is… if you will allow me to come with? Rin is a young woman now, yet in many ways she is still inexperienced. She needs a motherly figure in her life."

Though it grated on Kagome's nerves to have to ask permission from anyone, even she knew that it was impossible to make Sesshomaru do anything he did not want to do. When it came to stubbornness, that was one of the few things that both half-brothers had in common.

"Hn." Sesshomaru saw the value in her explanation, but he would be damned if he let her think that he was going to enjoy her continued presence in his life.

Truth be told, the miko had proven loyal and honorable to a fault, something to be admired in demons, let alone a mere human. She also bathed regularly, unlike every other human he had ever come across, which was something his nose deeply appreciated. Also, her tendency to lose her temper was… amusing to say the least, provided it was not aimed in his direction.

"All in all," he decided, "she would not be a terrible addition to this one's group. At least she is less irritating than the toad... It is truly a miracle that this one has not killed that insufferable git after all these centuries."

Kagome took his noncommittal response as a sign to do as she pleased. As with Rin, he would neither stop her nor encourage her to follow him. She bowed to him as well, though she stubbornly refused to bow as low as Rin had, and walked briskly back towards her hut in the village to gather her things.

As she walked back, the old spark of excitement at getting ready to travel began to warm her low spirits. She had been getting rather restless and bored as of late. With the jewel gone and no family to occupy her, Kagome had found herself wondering what purpose she had anymore. A miko without a purpose was truly a sad thing indeed. She had even begun sinking back into the clutches of depression, but she had not wanted to burden her friends or her adoptive children with her dark thoughts.

Unwittingly, Sesshomaru's decision to let Rin leave had provided her with the perfect out. Surely somewhere along the way during her travels with Sesshomaru, she could find her purpose once again. Kagome found her strides growing bigger with every passing moment, until she was almost running by the time she reached the hut she shared with Rin.

Inside, she found Rin furiously stuffing her favorite clothes and a few other belongings into a bag. Rin glanced up at Kagome as she walked in the door and looked downright defiant as she proclaimed, "I'm going with him. You can't convince me otherwise. I know my place is at his side, and it always has been." The tremble in Rin's chin gave away the girl's fear that Kagome would try to prevent this childhood dream from coming true.

Kagome held out her arms to ask for a hug, and when Rin complied, she merely kissed the girl lovingly on the top of her head before saying, "ah my little one, I would never dream of telling you not to go with him. I know you love him as any daughter loves her father, and let's be honest: there is no safer place in the world than that of by his side."

She could hear Rin sniffle in gratitude that Kagome was not angry with her choice to leave. Kagome knew that Rin saw her as a sort of mother-figure in her strange little patchwork family, and she of all people knew what it was like to fear disappointing your mother. She pulled back and wiped away the girl's tears.

"Tell me, little one, do you think you're ready to face those that would mock you for your humanity? Are you ready to defend your honor and the honor of your lord? There will be many that will see you as a weakness of Sesshomaru's, and they'll either work to either exploit that weakness or to undermine Sesshomaru's authority as Lord of the Western Lands. You're not a child anymore, so his traveling with a human can no longer be dismissed as just him amusing himself by taking in a 'pet' human so to speak."

Kagome asked these questions seriously. She didn't want the girl going into this with a naive idealization that life in the Western Lands would be this glamorous adventure. Rin was a resilient kid, but it had been ten years since the girl had traveled across the dangerous lands of Japan. It would only be more dangerous now that Rin was a mature young lady. Not only would demons attack Rin for being human, but the girl was also in danger of attracting the wrong kind of attention from some of the baser youkai and humans alike.

Rin's normally soft brown eyes grew hard and determined. "I would do anything to be with him again. You know I've learned a little bit of sword-fighting now, so I can finally help defend myself too! Plus, I know all _kinds_ of herbs thanks to you and Kaede-sama when she was alive." Rin's eyes turned soft once more as the girl pleaded with Kagome. "Please trust me Momma. I know I can do this."

Kagome's heart clenched and warmed at the same time to hear the girl call her Momma. She had heard Rin refer to her as that before, but it had only been when the girl thought the miko was not within hearing range. She never thought that the girl would work up the courage to say it to her face, but it only made Kagome's decision to leave Edo behind that much easier. After all, what kind of mother would abandon her child in their time of need?

Kagome practically beamed with pride and love as she said, "oh my sweet, sweet girl, I know you can do this. And I know that your place was always meant to be at Sesshomaru's side." She wiped away Rin's tears with the white sleeve of her now-standard miko robes and then wiped away her own happy-cry tears.

"That's why I'm coming with you."

Rin looked up at Kagome in astonishment before giving her a wide and ecstatic grin. With a squeal of happiness she exclaimed, "oh Momma! We're gonna have so much fun! We can go on adventures and kill demons and visit Shippo and annoy Jaken and it'll be just like old times…" The girl continued her happy chatter as they packed the remainder of their things, and Kagome was more than content to let Rin talk her ear off as it helped keep her mind off the seriousness of the journey they were about to embark on.

With only fifteen minutes or so to spare, Kagome took Rin around the village to say their goodbyes. They stopped at the school to tell the head school-teacher that Kagome would be leaving with Rin and to tell all of the little boys and girls that they had better keep up with their studies.

"After all," Kagome said with a fake stern look on her face, "if Miss Kagome comes back and finds out that you haven't been studying, then I'll give all of you spankings and make you write out a hundred sentences!" The oldest children rolled their eyes but smiled anyway, and the youngest children shrieked in fear as they promised to be good. Both Kagome and Rin hugged each child before heading off to the village miko's hut.

Once there, they explained again why they were both leaving. The village miko seemed nervous to be truly alone and in charge of the village, but Kagome reassured the miko that she would do a fine job, and to simply remember everything she had taught the girl.

The last place they went to was the Goshinboku. Rin did not approach the tree with Kagome out of respect for what had been placed at the bottom of the tree.

Kagome kneeled in front of the stone monument that had been erected of Inuyasha after his death. It was a statue of Inuyasha that had been beautifully carved out of white stone. He was depicted in mid-swing of the Tetsusaiga, and it captured all of the raw passion and fierceness that was the hanyou warrior who defeated Naraku. It was unknown where the awesome tribute had come from, for it had simply appeared about a month after the funeral. Beneath the statue, there was the small plaque they had originally buried him with that said simply: "Here lies Inuyasha, beloved son, husband, and protector. May his spirit be with us always."

Kagome brushed aside a stray bit of dirt that had fallen on the plaque. Her fingers traced each word lingering especially over the letters of his name.

"Oh Inuyasha," she whispered as old grief rose to the surface. It was not as fresh and raw as it had been so many years ago, but his absence still hurt nonetheless. "I'm leaving soon. I don't really know how long I'll be gone, but don't worry, I'll be safe." She smiled tearfully. "I'm going with Rin and Sesshomaru. Someone has to keep an eye on Rin, and Sesshomaru is a strong guy, but there are some things that only a mother can do for young girl in a cruel world. I know you and your brother were never that buddy-buddy, but you know as well as I do that he is a good man. Demon. Whatever." Kagome knew she was babbling, but she couldn't help it. It was second nature for her to fill awkward silence with nervous chatter.

"Just know that I love you, and I'll still think about you even when I'm not in Edo." She placed a tender kiss on his grave before standing up and gesturing to Rin to come over.

"I'm ready, little one."

Rin's eyes were so full of pity that it almost hurt to even look at her. The girl reached out a hand and squeezed Kagome's shoulder as a gesture of sympathy and comfort.

Kagome smiled at her and simply said, "lead the way my daughter."

Rin's childish smile reappeared again at the new endearment, and the girl happily lead Kagome to the clearing where an impatient Sesshomaru awaited them. If he showed any signs of surprise at Kagome's decision to join their group or of having heard Kagome's speech, Kagome did not see them. Instead, she merely nodded in determination. He, in turn, gave her the smallest incline of his head before turning and gathering up his youki cloud in preparation to take to the sky. She took that as an invitation to mount the two-headed dragon.

"This is it," Kagome thought. Her breath caught in her throat as she mounted Ah-Un along with Rin and signaled to Sesshomaru that they were ready. Sesshomaru floated effortlessly up and away. With a roar, Ah-Un launched itself up, and Kagome could already feel her troubled thoughts being blown away in the rushing winds.

 **End of Chapter**


	4. Chapter 4: The Western Palace

**A/N:** Hello readers! I try to keep A/Ns to a minimum because I think they distract from the story. But please, if you ever enjoy a chapter or want to comment on something you were confused/excited/amused about, feel free to review! Enjoy this chapter. It's the longest one so far!

-CaliforniaCougar (formerly DogDemon4Life)

 **Chapters 4: The Western Palace**

They had been traveling for almost 3 days straight before they neared Sesshomaru's home. Kagome, though not unused to traveling for hours at a time, found herself much more sore, stiff, and anxious to arrive than she had ever been in all her shard hunting days with Inuyasha and the gang.

"Ugh," she groaned to herself, "I am getting way too old for this crap. I feel like I've been hit by a train!" Kagome was only 25, but it felt like a lifetime ago that she had been this veritable fountain of energy that was always raring to go at the smallest hint of a shard.

"Of course," she smiled to herself, "having a cranky hanyou yelling in your ear that it's time to get up made for some great motivation." She felt the familiar twinge of the heart at the thought of Inuyasha, but the once-excruciating pain had dulled into a manageable ache over the years.

It would never truly go away, but Kagome was okay with that because a little pain was worth remembering him. To feel nothing was to have forgotten what they had, and Kagome could never forget the love they had shared. There would never be another Inuyasha, could never be another mate, and Kagome was perfectly resigned to this fate. She still had her friends, her adoptive children, and her miko duties to keep her happy. She didn't need a mate to have purpose in or give meaning to her life.

"And Sesshoumaru," Kagome added as an afterthought. "I'm not quite sure what to call him. He was an ally once, but allies join forces out of convenience. The Shikon no Tama has been destroyed for years, so I don't really have anything to contribute anymore, and yet he still looks out for my well-being and allows me to travel with his odd little group. Inuyasha and he were never super close, so I wouldn't exactly call him a brother. He did take care of me right after Inuyasha's death, so I'd call him a friend, but we aren't exactly going to be braiding each other's hair and having sleepovers anytime soon…"

Stifling a giggle at the thought of having a girl's night with the icy demon lord, Kagome decided it was best not to label the nature of her and Sesshomaru's relationship. As in every aspect of his life, Sesshomaru was quite unique. But Kagome was undeterred by the Western Lord's cold demeanor: she had made friends of enemies before, and Sesshomaru was truly no enemy. In fact, the way he had cared for her during her depression had only solidified her high opinion of the man. She was determined to use her time in the castle to make a friend of the tightly wound lord.

"Speaking of his castle…." Kagome craned her neck excitedly over Ah-Un's thick skull, dying for even a hint of their destination. And she would not be disappointed. Just over the last of the treetops, she could see a 200-foot stone wall towering over everything. The wall was even higher than most of the modern castle walls that she knew of in her time, and Kagome marveled at the amount of time that it must have taken to construct it.

She surmised that the height was not overkill, but rather out of necessity. A 100 foot wall could easily be scaled in a single leap by any common demon. Even at 200 feet, a high-level demon like Sesshomaru could probably still overcome it with ease, but it was enough to keep most threats at bay. Those stupid enough to try would be met with and dispatched by one of the dozens of guards that she could see posted around the sentry-towers built atop the wall.

Beyond the large wooden gate and the watch towers, she could see vast, open grasslands followed by several smaller homes that made up a village within the walls of the great Western Shiro. As Ah-Un and Sesshomaru flew overhead, Kagome could just make out several shops that made up what appeared to be a little marketplace at the center of the village.

"I'm so gonna have to check those out later!" Kagome thought excitedly. "Though I'll have to drum up a little cash first." Her eyebrows pinched together as she began brainstorming just how exactly she was going to get some snooty demons to pay up to a feeble _human miko._ She could almost hear the smugness in their faces, and she rolled her eyes as she realized just how fun this was all going to be.

It was then that she noticed the castle itself, and she had to stifle a small gasp at how impressive it was. Her mouth formed a little o as she stared at the massive staircase leading up the front of the castle. At the top of the stairs were three humongous wooden doors made out of the darkest black oak she had ever seen. That same oak made up the intricately carved wood of the stacked roofs. Each roof curled delicately at the edges, each a priceless example of craftsmanship. In a word, it was simply:

" _Magnificent,"_ Kagome sighed in appreciation as they began their descent towards the bottom of the stairs.

Sesshomaru caught her pronouncement over the rushing of the wind, and though he made no indication that he had heard her exclamation, he could not help the rush of pride that pooled in his chest. It was his home after all. He took pride in every detail, and it was his responsibility to ensure that everyone and everything under his rule was taken care of to his exacting standards.

A strict and near-ruthless leader he might be, but his loyal subjects were well rewarded. Not only was he fair in all judgements due to not being swayed by irrational emotions, but he also afforded his subjects the security of his protection. None would dare attack one under the protection of this Sesshomaru, and those that did would not live to regret the affront to his lordship.

Wordlessly and gracefully, Sesshomaru's youki cloud dissipated as he awaited Rin and Kagome's landing on Ah-Un. He held out a hand first to Rin and then to Kagome. As they turned around to grab their bags, they found that a servant had already fetched them off of the two-headed dragon's back.

As the demoness bowed low to their lord, Kagome could not help but study the girl. With short, pure white hair and two large, fluffy ears on the tops of her head, Kagome thought the girl to be quite striking despite the plain clothes she wore. They resembled Kagome's miko garb, but they were dark gray whereas hers was red, and sewn into the left chest was the the insignia of the West: the crescent moon. A quick swish of white behind the girl's back revealed the presence of a large tail to match the ears. Kagome guessed the girl to be some kind of wolf demon, but obviously not of Kouga's tribe. She wondered if the servant girl was from an icier region of the Northern Lands. Her musings were interrupted by the girl's soft-spoken introductions from behind her short crop of hair.

"Greetings, Lord Sesshomaru. Greetings, my lord's ward and honored guest. My name is Majime. Should you require anything during your stay here, please do not hesitate to request it of this humble servant."

Kagome returned the bow and replied, "it is lovely to meet you Majime. My name is Kagome."

If Kagome's kind words or unusual familiarity surprised the wolf demon, it did not show in her stunning, plum-colored eyes. The woman withdrew silently with orders from Sesshoumaru to have their belongings delivered to their respective rooms.

At the top of the stairs, they were greeted by several members of Sesshomaru's army. First was General Shou, a tall, thin bat youkai who wore an all black kimono with black armor. His eyes were an un-earthly color of red, but perhaps the most fearsome thing about him were the two large, webbed wings unfurling behind him. When introduced, he gave a curt nod of his head, but Kagome could almost sense the irritation rolling off of him in waves at having his time wasted on such frivolous things as small talk.

Next was Commander Toshi. Kagome couldn't quite decipher what kind of demon Toshi was, but it had to have been some kind of amphibian or reptile judging by the bright green, scaly tail she could see poking through the back of the commander's skin-tight uniform. The outfit resembled Sango's demon slayer uniform, except it was a two-piece suit, and Kagome could see the same bright green scales from her tail starting at the top of her waistband. Toshi's bright yellow eyes were less irritated and more suspicious than General Shou's, but Kagome smiled kindly at her anyway. The commander responded with a haughty sniff and a toss of her dark blue ponytail.

The last two commanders were the kitsune twins Kiyoko and Kyoto. Out of the four, these two were the most open and least hostile, and Kagome knew instantly that they would become fast friends. It helped that they were kitsune and they reminded her of her son Shippo. Kiyoko, Kagome could tell, was the more mischievous of the two. The commander had bright pink hair that cascaded around her shoulders like a waterfall that nearly hit the floor. Kagome counted _six_ equally pink and bushy tails behind Kiyoko, all of them twitching madly in curiosity at what their lord had brought home with him this time. Kyoto, on the other hand, was more reserved, and her tails (also six) were sleeker and standing perfectly still as if they were at attention as well. Kagome decided that, although Kyoto showed less emotions, she nonetheless had kindly eyes.

After the brief introductions were over, the group immediately got down to the business of catching Lord Sesshomaru up on the goings-on of the Western Shiro in its lord's absence. Kagome, not pretending to be even remotely interested in the more mundane details of running an empire, simply fell in line to the back of the group with RIn and allowed the girl to chatter away happily as a sort of tour guide so to speak.

"And over here, that's where we will eat breakfast every morning! Lord Sesshomaru doesn't eat breakfast, but sometimes he'll stop and have some tea with me while I eat..." Rin gestured towards a huge dining hall with the longest table she had ever seen. There must have been room for nearly fifty people, and Kagome wondered if it bothered the sweet girl that she ate alone most meals.

"Kind of a sad life for a kid," Kagome thought to herself. "Makes me glad I decided to come with her. At least we can keep each other company when his silent lordship is busy with other things." She realized that she had not heard what Rin had just said.

"Neh, Rin dear, I'm sorry. I didn't hear that last part. Can you say that again?" Kagome smiled sweetly at her not-so-little girl.

"Sure mama!" Rin chirped. "I said that the dojo is down the hall to the right. That's where Lord Sesshomaru observes the soldiers training and decides who is progressing acceptably and who is unworthy."

Kagome felt sorry for those deemed unsatisfactory, for she knew only too well just how demanding the great Daiyoukai could be.

"The gardens, that's my favorite place in the whole castle personally, are right next to our rooms mama. Isn't that great? I think it's great!"

"It sure is sweetie. Maybe you could show me the gardens after dinner tonight, okay?" Kagome smiled to see her daughter so ecstatic over finally coming home to the castle for good. She could only imagine how lonely it must have been for Rin to be away for so long from the closest place the girl could call home.

With a start, Kagome realized that the group in front of them had come to a halt. Majime had reappeared from putting their bags away, and Sesshomaru was saying something to the wolf demon too low for Kagome to hear. Majime nodded, the white hair tumbling prettily around her sweet face, and turned to Kagome and Rin before bowing deeply.

"Lady Rin, Lady Kagome. If you would please follow me, I will show you to your new rooms so that you may both freshen up before dinner is served."

"Thank you Majime." Kagome smiled at the girl. "Sesshomaru, should we expect you for dinner?" General Shou and his commanders seemed taken aback by this human's inappropriate familiarity with their lord, and they were even more surprised that their great leader did nothing to rectify the woman's grievous error in etiquette.

"No," Sesshomaru said curtly. "I have other matters to attend to." He purposefully ignored her lack of formality and did not bother to offer up an explanation as to who exactly the miko was. Knowing her true origins, her casual manner of speak no longer aggravated him as it would have just a few years ago. Being his ally for several years had also lessened his irritation with the insufferable woman's quirks. In truth, it amused him to see his commanders and general so indignant on his behalf. He wondered who would be the first to bring up the miko's transgression after her departure.

Kagome merely nodded in acquiescence and turned to follow Majime down the hall. As soon as they had rounded the corner, Kagome could hear General Shou protesting loudly.

"Who does that human wench believe herself to be that she should be so disrespectful of your person? Someone ought to teach that girl a lesson!" His complaint was punctuated by what sounded like a cross between a growl and a screech.

"Calm down Shou!" Kiyoko rolled her eyes at the overreacting male and played absentmindedly with a twitching tail. "Do you really believe that if Sesshomaru did not know the woman that he would be tolerating such a thing? Please… the girl's head would have been sliced cleanly from her shoulders before she could have finished his name.

"Agreed," chimed in Toshi. "I am more interested as to who she is and what exactly she is doing here." One slender eyebrow rose in question.

Sesshomaru cut off their frivolous gossip with a casual flick of the wrist. "Why I have brought the miko here is none of your concern," Only Kyoto seemed to notice that he had called the girl a miko, and she filed that tidbit of information away for later use. "Commander Toshi, discuss what your spies have heard in the East."

Commander Toshi, who was in fact a chameleon demon (which made her an obvious candidate for head spy), bowed slightly in apology and began her debriefing.

Meanwhile, Kagome and Rin had just arrived to their new rooms. The rooms were right next to each other, and Kagome realized that not only were the gardens right down the hall from them, but so were these massive quarters that could only belong to the great Sesshomaru himself. Kagome fought a small blush from rising to her face at the thought of Sesshomaru sleeping in such proximity to her. She might be celibate, but she wasn't dead!

Shaking her head to clear her mind of such… weird thoughts, Kagome instead focused on oohing and ahhing over Rin's room. The floor was made of the most beautiful dark wood she had ever seen in all her life, and there were dozens of tatami mats interlaced throughout the floor, so their bare feet still felt warm even in the cold room.

In the center of the room was a simple, yet elegant tea table with a large blue cushion on all four sides of the table and a beautiful tea set in the middle. Kagome smelled the steam from the pot and could already feel the tension leave her shoulders at the fragrant smell.

Behind the table was a nook with a breathtaking piece of art on display. It was an image of three large white dogs howling at a crescent moon with smoke swirling around them as they ran through a darkened forest. Kagome knew instantly that it must be Inu No Taisho, Sesshomaru, and Sesshomaru's mother, and she found herself wondering what it must have been like growing up knowing all the responsibility that you would one day inherit. She reached up and traced the stripes on the smallest dog's face.

"Especially when you have to inherit it all far too soon," Kagome sighed mentally.

Ignoring the pang in her heart that came at that thought, Kagome followed Rin past one of the shoji doors on either side of the painting. It lead to a lovely bedroom with a futon decorated with the finest silks and pillows a girl could want. Inside that room, there was also a larger screen door to the left that led to a courtyard shared between four different living quarters. Rin later told her that other rooms connected to the garden were her rooms, Lord Sesshomaru's rooms, and their assigned servants' rooms.

Kagome's head was almost swimming at the luxurious setting, and although she was excited to finally sleep on a proper mattress again, she was a bit uncomfortable with the amount of formality she now found herself dealing with.

"Majime, dear, please!" Kagome begged the girl. "Stop calling me Lady Kagome. Just Kagome is fine, really!"

The wolf demon shook her head furiously and seemed to grow as pale as her pure white hair.

"Oh no, my lady, I could not dare to do such a thing! Lord Sesshomaru would be most upset if I were to show his intended such disrespect!"

Kagome whirled around from looking at the gardens.

"His WHAT?"

Majime blinked twice before repeating herself slowly.

"His… intended?" This time, the girl sounded less sure of herself. "My lady, you have been placed in the quarters of the Lady of the West. I… I assumed that you and my lord were betrothed. I admit, I was surprised that he brought home a human, but who am I to question my lord's decisions?" Her head cocked to the side in confusion, and if Kagome hadn't been so upset, she would have giggled at just how adorable the girl looked. "Are you saying that you and Lord Sesshomaru are not…?"

Kagome sputtered.

"NO! We most certainly are NOT!" Majime winced at the piercing sound, and Kagome gave the demon a swift apology before she began muttering to herself. "Stupid Sesshomaru and his stupid rooms... I'm gonna give him a piece of my mind the next time I see him… Who does that pompous jerk think he's messing with?"

She was so lost in her indignant ramblings that she didn't notice the appearance of another servant. This one was human, surprisingly, and an older woman (Kagome later guessed her to be about 40) with motherly eyes and a soft face covered in wrinkles that only grew a little deeper when smiling.

"Greetings my lady," the woman's voice startled Kagome out of her thoughts. "My name is Hatsu." Hatsu bowed deeply before continuing. "My lord has assigned me to be your personal attendant for as long as you reside within this castle."

Kagome returned the bow and introduced herself as well. She knew instantly that she would like this woman, for the woman reminded her of her own mother. A fresh wave of homesickness hit her as she reminded herself harshly that she would never see that world again, so there was no sense in thinking about the things that would never be.

She plastered a fake smile on her face, told Rin that she was feeling tired, and asked Hatsu to be shown to her rooms.

"Certainly, my lady," Hatsu replied gently, almost as if the woman could see right through Kagome's facade of happiness. "Follow me this way please." Hatsu lead her to the room around the corner from Rin's. Kagome felt a little better knowing that the girl would be so close to her should any sort of trouble arise. After Hatsu showed her the door, Kagome dismissed her and asked to be left alone until it was time to prepare for the evening meal. The woman bowed and disappeared just as silently as she had arrived.

Kagome's room was nearly identical to Rin's except for the artwork. In her front room, there was a picture of Sesshomaru by himself. He was in his dog form, snarling and looking straight ahead. Kagome shivered as she thought to herself that it looked as if the demon dog was staring straight down into her soul with those hungry eyes.

But it was the painting above her bed that startled her, and the urge to both faint and scream arose in her. Torn between which urge to give into, she merely collapsed onto one of the cushions in the bedroom and fanned her face furiously with a shaking hand.

"I am going to KILL him!"

Kagome stared in horror at the offending picture: it was another picture of Sesshomaru, only he was in humanoid form and very _very_ naked from the waist up. His hair had been braided for once, and his bangs framed eyes that were blood red, which only contrasted with his markings and made his stripes and crescent moon stand out that much more.

Speaking of markings… apparently Sesshomaru had two more stripes that she didn't know about. They began at the hip and went (here, Kagome gulped) _lower._ Kagome had yet to stop blushing as she realized that every time she saw Sesshomaru now, that accursed image was going to be burned into her eyes.

"Yup," she muttered furiously. "I am going to kill him. How the hell am I supposed to sleep with _that_ hanging over me?"

She sighed and got into bed quickly, refusing to look up at the damn portrait.

"What the hell did I get myself into now?" She thought before sleep rose up to claim her tired mind.


	5. Chapter 5: Ashes to Ashes

A/N: Sorry for the delay, I had finals all last week and this week to take care of. Also, please don't expect Sesshomaru and Kagome to just magically wake up and fall in love. I want to make this entire story as in character and realistic as possible. Anyway, enjoy!

 **Chapter 5: Ashes to Ashes**

Kagome awoke the next day feeling more refreshed than she had in a good while. Sitting up for a good stretch, she yawned widely before realizing that Hatsu was in her room, and all she had on was an old nightgown of hers from the future (which was no doubt scandalous by this era's standards). She let out a small "eep!" and covered up her chest with her blanket.

"Hatsu!" she chuckled nervously. "What on Earth are you doing in my rooms? You scared me half to death!"

Hatsu bowed and said, "my apologies for startling you Lady Kagome. My Lord Sesshomaru has bid me to get you dressed and fetch you for breakfast. My Lady Rin awaits your company eagerly."

Kagome huffed indignantly. "I am perfectly capable of dressing myself, thank you very much! I am not a child." As an afterthought, she added, "and as I told Majime, it's just Kagome, so you can just forget about all that Lady business."

"My Lady, I am afraid that my Lord would be most displeased if I were to do so." Hatsu's eyes twinkled merrily. "As for the matter of dressing, while I am sure my Lady is most capable of donning her typical miko garb, Lord Sesshomaru made it clear that you lack the experience with the more complicated, courtly fashion."

Kagome grumbled but consented to letting the older woman help her into a kimono which consisted of " _only_ 3 layers my Lady," all the while muttering viciously about giving Sesshomaru a piece of her mind at breakfast.

"If he thinks I'm just going to sit around like a good little doll, he's got another think coming," she thought childishly to herself.

When the torture was finally over, however, and Hatsu let Kagome turn around and see herself in the mirror, she had to admit that she looked lovely. The innermost layer, near her throat, was a pale green with a white flower print. The second layer was a delicate, pastel pink, and the outermost layer was a slightly deeper green, like the color of grass in the spring. At the top of the kimono, it was plain, but as the eyes were drawn farther down, there was a veritable explosion of embroidered flowers. The mix of orange, yellow, and gold blossoms were so vibrant and lush that they took her breath away. It gave the effect that Kagome had sprouted up from the Earth itself, and she found herself uncomfortable with just how… _different_ she looked.

"This isn't me," Kagome thought to herself as Hatsu fashioned her hair into a simple updo with a jade hairpin holding the black curls in place. She made a face in the mirror at the strange girl standing where her reflection should be. Kagome was quick to replace her sour face with a sugary sweet smile as Hatsu finished tying her sash and asked Kagome what she thought.

"It's… lovely Hatsu thank you." Seeing that Hatsu remained unconvinced, she added, "it truly is beautiful Hatsu. I'm just not used to such finery," she confessed with an embarrassed blush on her face. "I'm not one for formalities as it is, and we mikos certainly never get invited to court, so I am quite out of my element here."

"Now now, my lady," the older woman patted her reassuringly on the arm. "You look positively radiant! I'm sure that you will make our lord very proud at how nicely you turned out." Hatsu winked conspiratorially at her, "we might even catch you a fine husband during your stay here."

Out of respect for the kindly servant, Kagome fought to keep from rolling her eyes. "If only she knew that I've no interest whatsoever in finding another man here." Her heart warmed to think of the choice words Inuyasha would have to say about the idea. Without realizing it, a small smile had graced her lips at the fond memories of her beloved.

Mistakenly taking her smile as a sign of encouragement, Hatsu began rattling off the names of a few minor lords (human of course) that were single and might be visiting Lord Sesshomaru's shiro soon. Kagome nodded politely, but she was too busy concentrating on not falling on her face in the surprisingly stiff outfit her maid had chosen for her. The farther they got, the more frustrated she became, and by the time they had reached the dining hall where breakfast was to be served, you could practically see the smoke coming out of her ears.

Plopping down furiously next to Rin at the end of the table, Kagome began shoveling food into her mouth, angrily punctuating each complaint by stabbing the air with her chopsticks.

"Your father has a lot of nerve putting me in those rooms! Can you believe everyone assumes that I'm betrothed to him? As if I would ever mate a pompous lord like him! And what on earth is with these clothes? I'm not a freaking doll! I'm a miko for crying out loud! How the hell am I supposed to defend myself, or anyone else for that matter, if I can't even take two steps without feeling like I'm going to fall flat on my face?"

"Perhaps it was the artwork in your room that leaves you feeling faint miko." A deep rumbling sounded in her ears, and Kagome practically leapt out of her skin at the unexpected voice.

Though his stern facade remained unchanged, she could detect the tiniest hint of lightness in his voice, and her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Her voice rose up a few more octaves as she put two and two together.

"You KNEW what was in those rooms?!" Sesshomaru had to fight back a wince at her high-pitched shriek. "Why the hell am I staying there then?! And why do your servants think we're engaged to be mated?! And where the hell are my clothes?!" She jabbed her finger into his chest pointedly with each new question, trying to ignore the fact that it felt unbelievably hard and muscular beneath her slender fingertips.

Sesshomaru caught the offending appendage in between two claw-tipped fingers, and Kagome found herself sucking in sharp breath at how delicate yet deadly his grip was. It felt as though she was being burned slowly, the heat traveling up her arm and into the apples of her cheeks. Her chest heaving from her fit of indignation, she wrenched her hand out of his grasp and clutched it to her. Not wanting to think about what had just transpired, she settled for what she hoped was an intimidating glower.

Sesshomaru merely watched in amusement as the miko made a spectacle of herself, as she always did, and he found himself almost eagerly looking forward to spending the next few months provoking the fireball. He knew exactly what his servants would believe, and though he cared not for idle gossip, he was not above placing the girl in potentially awkward situations just to watch her sputter and blush. Humans were so easily prone to outbursts of emotions, which was most likely why Inuyasha had been such a brash, blustering warrior when he was alive.

"Miko," he finally spoke, "if you are through with your _tantrum_ ," he took care to place particular emphasis on the word, as if she were no more than an unruly whelp, "this Sesshomaru would like to sit at _his_ spot at the table." He sank gracefully to the floor, as if the matter had been settled. Kagome opened her mouth to object to being dismissed so easily, but before she could utter any more of her rantings, Sesshomaru cut her off.

"Of course this Sesshomaru was aware of the assumptions that would be made, but those rooms were closest to Rin's, and it was simply a matter of convenience and practicality." He looked pointedly at her over the rim of his cup of tea, as if daring her to retort. "This Sesshomaru was not aware that you cared so much for the opinions of others, miko."

Kagome wanted nothing more than to punch him in his pretty face when she saw that smug smirk splay across his lips and that stupid left eyebrow arched delicately upwards in mock confusion. She sat down again, this time across from Rin, all the while muttering to herself about "what the hell did I get myself into?"

Sesshomaru basked in the glory of his revenge. It would not do for the woman to go unpunished for her attempted mockery of his person back in the village.

"Oh yes, my little miko, you have no idea the kind of war you have begun," Sesshomaru thought smugly to himself. "The castle life has grown most tedious as of late, and I can tell that it is high time these complacent fools have their routines shaken up." Even as he plotted, however, he settled into a comfortable silence and listened to the miko and Rin chatter aimlessly about which stores they wanted to visit first and when they would go visit the bath houses and other trivial matters. General Shou came in to report for duty, as did the new head tutor, a stodgy-looking inu demon with black hair pulled back tightly into a bun and a bored look on his face.

"Rin," the demon lord interrupted their conversation uncaringly, "you are to continue your lessons from the village here in the castle. I have arranged for tutors to come live here permanently until I believe your education sufficient." He paused before continuing, giving Kagome a knowing look, and gesturing for his men to step forward from the doorway. "You and the miko will also begin receiving lessons on court etiquette."

The black-haired inu, Manabu, sneered and said "I can only imagine what horrendous habits you picked up living with my lord's brother and his band of village fools."

Kagome stiffened at the mention of her dead mate. She slammed her hands down on the table and stood up in an instant, nearly stumbling because of the constricting kimono. Undeterred, she stalked over to the cruel demon and did a remarkable impression of a growl for a human woman.

"You would do well to never speak of my deceased mate in such a manner." She drew herself to her full height, and her powers began crackling in the air and whipping her hair out of its confines. She was nowhere near as tall as the demons that surrounded her, but nonetheless, Manabu had to fight back the urge to flinch at the white-hot burning in his veins.

"That is enough miko." The sound of Sesshomaru's cold voice cut through the tense silence. When her powers still did not abate, he tried again, purposefully using the gentler voice he used to use on Rin after she would dream of wolves. "Kagome." She turned to look at him, her eyes hollow and so gray they seemed almost like twin storms. Strange, he had never thought to notice the color of her eyes pushed aside his discomfort as the urge to protect a pack member rose unbidden within him. "That is enough."

Instantly, the air went still again, and all the demons in the room breathed a collective sigh of relief at the feel of her surprisingly oppressive powers dissipate. She turned back to the offending demon (who now looked appropriately chagrined).

"Do not speak of things that you know nothing about." Her tone was icier than either Rin or Sesshomaru had ever heard before. "Inuyasha was twice the demon you will _EVER_ be. He was the son of the great Inu No Taisho, slayer of Naraku, and protector of the Shikon No Tama." She whispered the next part, almost to herself, "He was a wonderful husband, mate, and friend, and he had more honor in a single claw than you possess in your entire body. For all your pride in your full blood, for all your courtly ways, for all your riches, you could never hope to compare to him."

Her speech had come to an end, and she seemed to hunch with an unknown weight. She quietly asked Hatsu to escort her back to her rooms to rest, claiming not to feel well. Hatsu agreed quickly, and the pair were gone, soon followed by a silent Majime and Rin, who was almost in tears (for she had loved Inuyasha as an uncle and also did not take kindly to the cruel things Manabu had said).

As soon as the women left the room, General Shou spoke up quietly from the corner of the room. "Have you no decency Manabu? I would have thought your courtly ways would say something about not disrespecting the dead. In front of his former mate, no less." General Shou wasn't exactly what you would call sensitive, nor did he hold any particular affections for humans, but even he was disgusted by what had just occurred. Any fool could see that the bond between them had been true.

The tutor turned his nose up at the general, trying to pretend that the miko's power and words had not touched him. "As if I would care about the feelings of a stupid human girl and her dead, half-breed mate."

Lord Sesshomaru had remained silent up until this point, having been content to allow Kagome to put the insubordinate scholar in his place. Now, however, he could not hold his tongue.

"I believe this Sesshomaru called you to the castle to instruct said humans, and not to insult my dead half-brother and his former mate. You are dismissed. Your services are no longer required. Leave the Western Palace this instant, before I decide that your life is no longer required as well." As if to punctuate the depth of his displeasure, Sesshomaru allowed a small amount of poison to drip from either claw. The sizzle of acid hitting the ground turned the proud dog demon into a simpering kitten, and he turned to run with his tail quite literally tucked between his legs.

With a wave, he dismissed General Shou as well, tasking him to ensure the tutor's prompt departure. Without knowing exactly why, he felt the urge to check in on the distraught miko. His feet had already taken him outside her quarters, and though her aura was almost nonexistent compared to normal, his impeccable sense of smell could still detect the unmistakable scent of salty tears.

Sesshomaru found himself hesitating to enter the room, completely and uncharacteristically at a loss as to how to rectify the imbalance in his pack's emotions. Although logically he knew that she was speaking to his vassal, Lord Sesshomaru could not help but imagine those words had been directed at him as well. He felt an irrational stab of jealousy that his brother could conjure so much loyalty and love even after all this time. But that was ridiculous. What did a DaiYoukai need with love?

He usually only made an allowance for Rin. He knew instinctively that she loved him, but even he dared not acknowledge the depth of his affections for the girl who he had come to accept as his daughter. Humans loved with a flaming passion unmatched by any demon, but their flame was all too soon extinguished, leaving only ashes in their wake, as was evidenced by the miko. Even after eight years, Inuyasha still held a tight hold on her heart.

Sesshomaru found himself wondering if that was a blessing or a curse as he turned his back to the door (and all the confusion it represented) and walked away.


	6. Chapter 6: The Art of Healing

A/N: I revised a bit of Chapter 1, but nothing too significant. If you don't want to reread it, I'll summarize the change: Rin is a miko (not a very strong one, but enough to warrant training, mostly in healing). It's going to come up either in this chapter or the next, and I didn't want anyone feeling confused. Enjoy!

 **Chapter 6: The Art of Healing**

Kagome had been sulking in her rooms for a good while now, and it was beginning to grate on Sesshomaru's nerves. He should not even have been sparing any attention on the silly girl, for he had much more pressing matters to deal with as Lord of the Western Lands. And yet, in between filling out supply orders, approving minor repairs of the castle, settling disputes between feuding minor lords, and hearing reports of an uptick in skirmishes in the Eastern Lands, Sesshomaru found his mind drifting back to the moment when she had looked at him with those strange, gray eyes so full of raw emotion.

Though Manabu had ultimately been the cause of her fury, Sesshomaru knew that he had instigated her wrath. He had only required her to wear the kimono and made those comments about the artwork in her living quarters to annoy her. If Sesshomaru were being honest with himself, as he always was, getting a rise out of the miko was one of the few forms of entertainment to be had in this castle. He was not normally this… petty.

And truth be told, he had thought her to look incredible in that moment, as ferocious as a demoness. The rush of power around him (though obviously not able to harm him whatsoever) had swirled and surged around him like a fierce yet gentle caress, but that was neither here nor there. Now his actions had inadvertently caused her distress, for which he was a tad regretful (not that he would _ever_ admit it).

The miko was currently inconsolable, almost as if she had reverted back to her emotional state right after Inuyasha's passing. Sesshomaru had been too busy (and perhaps a bit hesitant) to go and rectify the situation properly, so he tasked Rin with the restoration of her well-being. Rin had insisted (a bit naively) that a few pretty flowers, some herbal tea, and a good cry would snap her out of it. That had been three days ago, and his already limited stores of patience had begun to evaporate.

At once, inspiration struck him in the form of a solution he knew would please the moping miko. He swiftly penned a missive and summoned his fastest messenger. After sealing the document with the official crest of the House of the West (a half-moon naturally), instructions were given as to the destination and intended receiver were. The messenger was not to return without delivering that which Sesshomaru had charged him with, or the demon's life would be the forfeit. With that not-so-subtle threat, the messenger took off hastily to deliver his lord's message.

Satisfied that the matter would soon be rectified, Sesshomaru allowed himself a tense sigh in the privacy of his office. It was the only gesture of stress that he would allow to break through his normally ironclad facade, and he found himself wondering just when he had gotten so soft. He had never relished the endless stream of paperwork that was part and parcel of being Lord of the West, but he understood it to be an essential part of his duty and had done so without complaint for centuries after the passing of his sire.

Within the past few decades however, he found that his tolerance had declined sharply. Even before Rin had found him and refused to disengage herself from his presence, he had been… restless. His endless patrols, his search for true power, his antagonistic encounters with Inuyasha: all of it stemmed from his growing weariness with life at court. Out there, things were exciting, even if only for a moment. Here, monotony reigned supreme. Courtiers were all alike: hungry for false power, conniving, deceitful, selfish, and always circling, eagerly picking every word for signs of perceived slight or weakness on his behalf.

Truly, it was only after saving Rin that he began to understand that there was more to life than simply the pursuit of power. The girl had truly had nothing to offer him all those years ago (had barely anything to offer herself in fact) and yet still she had persisted in attempting to help him when he had found himself humiliated after underestimating Inuyasha. He had never before known a creature to be so selfless and to ask nothing in return. At first, she was no more to him than a simple oddity or a kind of pet companion. She was something to be studied with idle curiosity. The more time he spent with her, however, the more she had grown on him and the more he had begun to actually see that her kind, carefree spirit was something to be appreciated and admired rather than mocked or tolerated. Unwittingly, the great Lord Sesshomaru, who needed nothing and no one, had become… attached.

Unbidden, his father's words came floating back to him: "Do you have someone to protect?" Back then, he had told his sire no. Sesshomaru could admit now that he had been wrong to believe that caring about someone made a person weak. Had Inuyasha not fought like a demon four times his caliber in the name of protecting the miko and his strange, mismatched pack? Inuyasha had been a brash whelp with little formal training and zero strategy, but he had always managed to come out relatively unscathed, and it was clear to Sesshomaru and all those who had known the half-demon that it was the miko's love and friendship that inspired Inuyasha to new heights of ferocity and strength.

And now, after centuries of adamantly disavowing humans and all the weakness they represented, Sesshomaru found himself with not just _one_ human someone to protect, but _two._ More than that if one counted the taijya, the monk, their _several_ children (really, could the monk not keep his hands to himself for more than a few minutes?) and her brother. All of them technically belonged under his protection as his deceased half-brother's pack had become his responsibility after his death (much to his chagrin). Yes, if the great Inu No Taisho could only see his son now, he would be most pleased with what his meddling influence had wrought.

Sesshomaru scowled at the thought of his father's gloating and summoned that insufferable toad Jaken. Let the sniveling fool finish this paperwork. He wanted to work off some pent up frustration, and there just happened to be a new batch of recruits being trained today.

As Jaken came to relieve Lord Sesshomaru of his duties, the toad couldn't help but shiver at the murderous gleam in the master's eyes.

"Thank Kami I'm not a soldier!" Jaken squawked after his lord left the room. "My life would surely be over! After all these years of faithful service, and my lord would STILL make me bleed for his entertainment!"

"Jaken." Sesshomaru appeared out of nowhere in the doorway. Jaken screamed girlishly and nearly leapt up from his seat. "All of my paperwork had better be properly taken care of by my return, or I will be… most displeased." Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes for effect and fought back a smirked as the toad's stench of fear permeated the room. Really, the poor toad was just too much fun to torture. He tried not to chuckle as he strolled towards the dojo. That would have been most undignified after all.

While Sesshomaru was taking out his pent up energy on his vassals, Rin found herself outside of Kagome's bedroom door, pleading with her adoptive mother to come out from her quarters.

"Mama, I have brought you some tea! It is most delicious, I assure you." Silence. "And I also brought some zion…" Still nothing. Rin sighed. Her mother was being most stubborn, and Rin was just about at her wit's end trying to convince her mother to stop sulking. The girl left the tray of tea and soup on the table, with a promise to be back later.

Once Kagome was sure that Rin had left, she shuffled slowly to the sliding door and pushed it open. Plopping wearily onto the cushion at the table, she sipped half-heartedly at the tea and nibbled on a piece of the rice cake floating in her soup. She let out a sigh much like Rin's and wondered, not for the first time, just what exactly she was doing here.

"I mean, it's not like I belong here." Kagome allowed herself to wallow in the self-pity that had been festering all week. "Hell, I don't really belong _anywhere_ anymore. Inuyasha was my only reason for staying after Naraku died, but with him gone… I just don't know what to do with myself. I thought coming with Rin would give me a new purpose (her protection), but let's be honest, how much am I _really_ going to help her? Especially in these damn kimono. Gods, I hate these things!"

She could feel her anger bubbling up again, and she latched onto it desperately like a drowning man would a buoy.

"Just who the hell does Sesshomaru think he is, making me dress up like a damn geisha? I am the fucking Shikon Miko! I'm not one of these stupid, simpering courtiers for goodness sake! If he thinks that I am just going to be a good little human and know my place, then he can kiss my ass like the rest of these hoity-toity demons!"

Her eyes flashed with power once more, and she stomped back into her bedroom (though she couldn't stop the furious blush that rose every time she caught sight of that heart-stoppingly ridiculous picture over her futon) to tear off the now wrinkled/stained (and probably ruined) kimono that Hatsu had helped her into three days ago when the argument that had started all this began. She put on her traditional undergarments and hollered for Hatsu, who appeared startlingly quickly for a human servant.

"Yes, my Lady Kagome?" the older woman bowed and waited for instructions. Though the woman said nothing, as it was not a servant's place to offer unsolicited remarks, Hatsu was pleased to see that the kindly miko had regained some of her original spark. The servant had not known the miko for more than a few days, but already it was clear to see the respect that she garnered from everyone whose lives she touched.

Rin had been wringing her hands in distress ever since the miko had shut herself in, and there had been rumors that their Lord had been even more demanding and easily irritated than usual. Even General Shou had been caught expressing admiration for the sheer power she had displayed when berating the sniveling aristocrat Manabu. General Shou was not one for false praise, nor was he easily impressed by demons (much less a mere human girl), so for him to speak of her with such high regard was no small feat. It would not do for one such as her to dwell in the past so much as to forget to live in the present.

"If you would be so kind," the miko's sweet voice was tinged with the ill-concealed spice of anger as she tried not to take out her irritation on Hatsu, "would you please fetch me my miko's garb?" She brooked no disagreement in her flashing grey eyes.

"But of course, my lady. My Lord Sesshomaru had ordered them to be washed and replicated when you and Lady Rin first arrived. I will go fetch them immediately and return shortly." Bowing lowly, Hatsu took her leave.

Kagome could feel some of the steam leave her at the information revealed by those casual remarks. This whole time, she had been thinking Sesshomaru was simply torturing her for his own amusement by watching her struggle pitifully in traditional kimono, almost as if to throw it in her face that she wasn't good enough or domesticated enough to fit in. Could she truly have misinterpreted his intentions so badly? Perhaps it was time that she had a little chat with the icy Lord…

She absentmindedly pondered what she would say as she finished tying the sash of her priestess clothing and wandered down the halls to find the dog demon that had so consumed her thoughts.

&&88&&88&&

"What news do you have to report, Jun?" The mysterious figure's voice came out like a hiss from the dark shadows of the alley in the outskirts of the Western Shiro. Night had fallen like a cloak upon the lands, and nary a soul was out and about at such an ungodly hour.

"The worthless dog's weakling human ward has been brought back to live at the castle. Disgusting that a demon as powerful as he should sully his presence with that of a filthy human," Jun spat on the ground as if to emphasize the visceral disgust he felt. Day in and day out, he feigned allegiance to the House of the West, but the time was nearing when he could make his move at last. "The stupid chit is pathetically weak and soft-hearted. She is not even a proper miko! She shows barely any aptitude towards anything other than herbs and healing." The aggravating twit had been hanging around the medical wing since she arrived, and Jun could barely repress his disgust every time she so much as looked in his direction or asked him a question in that gratingly sing-song voice.

"Perrfect," the disembodied voice rumbled in contentment. "Then the time has come. You will strike at the heart of the Western Lord, and soon, all of his territory will crumble and fall before our wrath. Do not fail me Jun. Should you be discovered, I will not hesitate to disembowel you myself. _If_ the Western Dog does not dispose of you first."

Jun shuddered to think of the consequences should he fail his master. He bowed to the waist and reassured his master that he would not.

"But master, what of the other girl? The Western Dog has brought with him the Shikon Miko who brought about Naraku's demise some ten years ago with along with the dog's half-breed brother."

"What of herr?" his master yowled lowly. "If she gets in the way, dispose of her, but I would much rather see her claimed as my prize. She would make a fine concubine for breeding."

"As you wish it, so it will be my lord." With no further orders from his master, Jun strode back into the castle and began to think of just how and when he would set the events in motion that would ultimately lead to the Rise of the East.

Yellow eyes peered out from the inky shadows like hot embers in the ash. "Soon, you dirty cur," the gravely voice whispered maniacally. "Soon…."

 **End of Chapter**


	7. Chapter 7: More than She Bargained For

**A/N:** Sorry for the long time between updates! Between school and softball season, I've just been swamped. But I'm back, and the rising action is really starting to come along. Enjoy, and don't forget to review! I would love to hear your comments/questions/reactions!

 **Chapter 7: More than She Bargained For**

Kagome had been stalking through the endlessly twisting hallways for what felt like an eternity but had probably only been twenty minutes or so. Her irritation grew with each turn that did not yield Sesshomaru's whereabouts, but she stubbornly refused to stoop so low as to admit she was lost to any of the demons she passed along the way. As it stood, she could almost _feel_ their unnatural gazes boring into the back of her skull as she passed them by. But Kagome would be damned if she tip-toed around the place like she should be ashamed because of what she was.

Thankfully, she ran into the pink-haired commander... Kiyoko, that was the kitsune's name. Kagome acted casual when asking where she could find Sesshomaru, and if Kiyoko noticed how sweaty and out of breath Kagome was, she did an excellent job of pretending not to notice.

"I believe he's sparring with General Shou, so he would be in the dojo." Taking note of the priestess's poorly-hidden confusion plastered all over her face, Commander Kiyoko decided to take pity on the woman and politely lied, saying "You can follow me if you'd like, I was just on my way to the dojo myself."

Kagome nodded furiously, grateful for the directions. As they walked in awkward silence, Kagome couldn't help but shyly peek at the woman through the sides of her eyelashes. The commander's luscious pink hair cascaded around her face freely and curled around her generous curves, as wild and unrestrained as a kitsune ought to be. Kagome couldn't help but sigh with envy at how beautiful the woman was.

"It's not fair," she thought childishly. "Why do full demons always have to be so pretty? Even the men are prettier than me!" Unbidden, her mind conjured up images of the pale god with hard amber eyes bearing down upon her from the portrait in her quarters. "Eep! Bad Kagome, bad!" The priestess fought down the blush that rose naturally to her cheeks, and if Kiyoko noticed, the commander thankfully didn't ask any mortifying questions. Kagome began to feel nearly dizzy after what seemed like an endless amount of turns, but at last they came to the dojo.

Sesshomaru was in the middle of a strike, his arms moving almost too fast for Kagome to track. Almost as quickly, the bat youkai general had parried the blow and whirled around for a counter-strike which was easily anticipated by a dog demon that was no longer standing in the air that the blade cut through.

A flash of silver was all that caught the edge of the priestess's vision as Sesshomaru began to quite literally run circles around General Shou and moved so quickly that he seemed nearly to vanish to the naked eyes. Surprisingly, General Shou merely closed his eyes and began to emit a sound so high pitched that Kagome had trouble even hearing it. His large, pointed ears began twitching furiously on the sides of his head. With a small gasp, Kagome suddenly realized what he was doing.

"Amazing," she said quietly. "He's tracking him with echolocation, just like a real bat."

Kiyoko was startled by her remark. "How does a mere priestess know so much about demon abilities? And what is this _ehko-lo-kay-shun_? Hmm… it seems Sesshomaru's new human is more interesting that she first appeared to be." The commander's pink tails swished with excitement. Truth be told, castle life tended to be a bit boring for a soldier in times such as these of peace, and she had been dying for a new source of entertainment. "Yes, this Ka-Go-Me will do quite nicely," Kiyoko smirked silently and said nothing aloud in response to the miko's breathy observations.

The air seemed to still suddenly, and Kagome felt herself tense involuntarily. "Something's about to happen," she thought to herself. And sure enough, just as Sesshomaru reappeared to the naked eye, the bat general spun in that direction and slashed his sword. However, Sesshomaru was no fool, and he had anticipated the general would have sensed the direction of his attack. He parried the blow, and before Kagome could finish blinking, Sesshomaru had his blade at the bat youkai's neck.

Kagome burst out with a round of applause that startled both youkai. They had both been aware of the onlookers' presence, of course, but clapping was not usually the response that sparring garnered from an audience.

"That was amazing!" Kagome chirped as she bounded over to the two males.

Though he hated himself for admitting to thinking such a thing, Sesshomaru could not help but note how her chest rose and fell rapidly in her excitement or how much brighter and crystalline her eyes seemed than the day she had given his (former) scholar for hire a severe tongue-lashing. His eyes narrowed at his train of thought, and he made up for it with a scathing remark.

"Hn. What else did you expect?" With look of disinterest, Sesshomaru spun away from the thoroughly distracting creature and began to put away the practice swords he and Shou had been using for this sparring session. Truly, General Shou was no match for the Great Dog Demon of the West, but it would not do for his general to become soft in times of peace.

These lands never stayed peaceful for long, for it was the way of all beings to wallow in their petty pursuits of power. Well, all being except for himself of course. He had no need for false power or silly trinkets. He had all the power he needed within himself, as the creation of Bakusaiga proved beyond a shadow of a doubt. Sesshomaru was so lost in his musings of past accomplishments that he almost did not notice the indignant priestess stomping up behind him. Almost.

"Now look here Mr. High-and-Mighty," Kagome glared. "I was just trying to give you a damn compliment! There's no need to be rude." She crossed her arms and let out a "hmph" of irritation, unaware that Sesshomaru and Shou were being treated to a lovely view of certain… assets being pushed up even higher than normal. The general had the decency to look away, but Sesshomaru was not about to be cowed by such a base thing as the female anatomy. He stared pointedly until the miko caught the direction of his gaze and yelped before dropping her arms at her side.

Sesshomaru fought back a smug smirk as he heard something that sounded suspiciously like "hentai" being muttered underneath the easily flustered miko's breath (along with several other words he thought only his soldiers knew). Her cheeks bloomed with embarrassment, the dusty pink deepening as it dipped beneath the collar of her shirt, and the great dog demon found himself idly wondering just how far down that blush went.

"Miko," Shou's deep voice cut through Sesshomaru's musings and Kagome's rant, "you will not address our lord with such familiarity, nor will you disrespect him in such a disgraceful manner." He sniffed primly. "In fact, human, you should be on your knees thanking my Lord for displaying such patience with one such as rude as you. Others have been beheaded for less."

Kagome whirled around on the bat demon in an instant, grateful for the distraction from her utter mortification at having caught Sesshomaru… ogling her? She marched up to him and stabbed him in the shoulder with her index finger for good measure.

"Look here buddy (poke), I don't know who (poke) you think I am, but I am _not_ (poke) called _Miko_ (poke) or _human_ (poke), or any other demeaning name you come up with. My name is Ka-(poke)Go-(poke)Me(poke). Got it?"

General Shou growled and made a move to strike the woman for daring to speak so freely and so offensively. Lord Sesshomaru swiftly raised his hand, and the bat demon's hand stopped immediately in mid-air. His general looked at him in disbelief.

"My Lord, you would allow this wench to speak such things?" Before Kagome could open her mouth and agitate the general even further, Sesshomaru interrupted.

"Need I remind you, Shou, that this is no ordinary miko, but the Shikon Miko who slew the half-breed Naraku along with my half-brother nearly 10 years ago? She _will_ be accorded the proper amount of respect." Sesshomaru caught Kagome sticking her tongue out childishly in her perceived victory before adding, "and she _will_ behave with a dignity that is befitting her station." When Kagome opened her mouth to protest, Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes and said, "enough miko, you are a guest in my home, and as such you must comport yourself appropriately. I will not have you accosting my men for an imagined slight."

Sesshomaru thought the miko seemed as if she would protest, but thankfully she snapped her mouth closed and nodded tightly, her eyes gleaming brightly with an ill-contained fire. Still, she looked as if one more slide comment might push her over the edge, and oh how Sesshomaru burned with the desire to see her lose control.

She had always been a fascinating, if rather uncouth, form of entertainment to him. Much more interesting than the rest of her kind who tended merely to squeal in terror like a gutted pig. True, he had lumped her in with the rest of the filth on their first few encounters, but that was simply because he had admittedly been blinded by the rage that his father would leave such a powerful weapon to his younger half-brother, who wielded it like a child wields a stick. Once the anger had begun to fade, curiosity took its place.

The miko had a spark that was unlike any other person he had ever met, demon or human. She truly did not know when she was outmatched; she merely charged headlong into battle if it meant defending her honor or the lives of her band of ragamuffin packmates. Ever since her mate had died, however, she had lost some of the fire that had made her so interesting to him all those years ago. Though she hid it well, the miko seemed… bland and tame compared to her former self. He decided magnanimously that it was time for all of that to change. She was under his care now, and it would please him to have her back to her entertaining wild self.

Kagome was in the middle of turning to walk away before she said something that would get her head lopped off from her shoulders, when she heard that infuriating dog demon speak with condescension nearly dripping from every syllable.

"Very good miko, I'm so glad that you have matured enough to know your place and keep quiet."

She stiffened, and without even stopping to think, she whirled around to face the smug demon. Her powers whipped around her like a vortex of wind as her hair fell loose from its bindings to fall around her reddening face, expanding so much that every corner of the western shiro could feel the heat of her power. Most demons would later describe it as a warmth like the licking of a mother to its babe, but in the infirmary, Jun felt an involuntary shiver of terror flow through him as the hairs on his arms began to burn and the faint smell of smoke began to pervade the room.

"Kami," he thought to himself, "if her powers can detect my intentions from the opposite end of the castle, how am I to complete my objective? I must tell my master that the miko must be eliminated first. She is too dangerous to the mission to keep alive." He skulked away from the castle as quickly as possible, and the guards who were currently distracted by the touch of the miko's power took no notice of a lone healer headed straight for the stronghold of the East.

Meanwhile, Kagome, unaware of the stir her powers were causing, approached the smirking demon lord once more as his general and commander watched on with a mixture of horror and awe. Each were thinking to themselves something along the lines of, "Who is this girl? Is she truly as strong as the legends say? I daresay she has become even stronger since Naraku was slain. Incredible!"

"My place? My PLACE?!" Kagome screamed at him in octaves so high that all had to fight the urge to wince. "Now look here Sesshomaru (Shou and Kiyoko audibly gasped at her daring use of Sesshomaru's name sans-honorific but dared not interfere), let's get one thing straight." She poked him once in between the chestplate armor he wore. "My only PLACE is at Rin's side. I came here to look after her and help protect her, and while I thank you for your hospitality, I REFUSE to be treated like some human pet to be controlled and trained to grovel for every presumed scrap of kindness you throw my way." She yanked her hand away and placed both hands on her hips, waiting for Sesshomaru to blow up at her or lash out physically, but all he did was maintain that infuriating facade of disinterest as he stared at her in stony silence.

Though his face betrayed nothing, Sesshomaru's thoughts were quite out of sorts as he examined the distraught miko's appearance. Her face had grown even more red, and her lower lip quivered in barely repressed fury. She was so… humanly expressive and open with her emotions. Sesshomaru should be feeling repulsed by her, but instead, he was feeling… aroused? This display of sheer power, although certainly no threat to him, was appealing tremendously to his beast, who had been slumbering peacefully until now. He thought carefully about what to say, before leaning over to whisper something in her ear that only she could hear. She gasped and stiffened before leaping backwards away from him with a look that was a cross between horror, indignation, and, dare he say, curiosity?

Ignoring her completely, Sesshomaru merely turned towards Commander Kiyoko and said in an almost bored tone of voice, "you and your sister will see to it that the miko learns to fight with just about anything other than that godforsaken bow of hers."

When Kagome looked as if she would protest that her archery skills were enough, he merely raised an accusing eyebrow and calmly said, "you claim to be here to protect Rin, yet do you expect an attacker to allow you to draw your bow and shoot them even in close quarters?" His sarcastic remarks were met with only silence, so he continued as if no interruption had occurred. "Also, she will need to begin a daily physical fitness and meditation regimen. I'll not have my castle's defenses weakened because someone cannot protect themselves, miko, so if you are to stay, then you will do everything in your ability to make yourself useful. That means _training_ to become stronger, faster, and more _controlled_." He said the last part with extra emphasis, twisting her earlier words into a subtle insult before walking away and tossing one final remark over his shoulder. "You had better get some rest Kagome. Your training begins tomorrow."

Kagome stared after him in stunned silence, her mouth slightly agape as she thought to herself in horror, "dammit Kagome, what did you get yourself into this time? What the hell did he mean when he told me he would make me learn to submit? And why am I looking forward to proving him wrong? And did he just say my name?" She let out a groan as she muttered to herself, "tomorrow is going to suck so bad."

Commander Kiyoko could only chuckle and lead the miko back to her room. This was going to be so much fun…

End Chapter 7


	8. Chapter 8: Beginnings

**Chapter 8: Beginnings**

The lanky cat demon sprinted through the forest without pause, deftly ducking under branches, dodging tree trunks, and leaping from treetop to treetop with all the nimble agility that one would expect from a cat demon. Jun had been running for over three hours straight, desperate to inform his Lord of the depths of the miko's power. Despite not being a bit out of breath, he could not stop the tremor that coursed through his muscles at the memory of the witch's powers burning his blood from the inside out even from halfway across the castle.

His master would be most unhappy to learn that the plans for the miko must change, but that bitch could not be allowed to ruin everything that Jun and his master had worked so hard for. His decades of groveling and simpering to that disgraceful dog would _not_ be in vain. It was bad enough having to be around such filth for so long, but to have to take orders from that insufferably arrogant Sesshomaru was simply more than Jun could bear.

The former dog general had been the same way: self-righteous in his belief that the Inu demons were entitled to the entirety of the Western Lands. But what those mangy mutts conveniently failed to remember was that large portions of what was now the Western Lands used to belong, nay _rightfully_ belonged to the Eastern Neko tribes.

It had been centuries since the lands had resided within the care of the Neko tribe, but Jun had all the tales memorized of the day that the cat demons were humiliated by the wretched Inu clan. The cowardly bastards did not dare face the fierce Neko army in battle, oh no, they used deceit and treachery to trick several greedy underlords around the edges of the Neko territory into selling off their land for exorbitant amounts of money. Before the former cat demon chief could even catch wind of the dirty deed, a messenger had been sent to the courts to declare that a fourth of the Neko territories now belonged to the Western lands.

Jun suppressed a shudder of rage and horror as he recalled what he knew about the massacre that occured day. The chief howled with rage and cut down the Western Land's messenger, which resulted in the Western Land's retaliatory strike against the lords who had sold them the land in the first place and had yet to leave. Entire households had been slaughtered, and only the children had been captured and brought back to be raised in the Western Lands.

He himself had been one of those children. His father had been a fat, disgraceful drunk of a panther demon who was more concerned with the soft comforts of being a lord (beautiful whores, plenty of drink, and all the food he could swindle from his serfs) than the hard life of being a soldier. The second the dog demons had showed up with their trunks of gold and precious stones, his impossibly wide eyes had nearly fallen from his head. In fact, one of the last images Jun had of his father was the sight of those same yellow eyes _actually_ popping out of his skull as the ambushing dog demon plucked them out right in front of his whole family.

Sometimes, in his sleep, Jun could still hear the screams ringing dreadfully in his ears, and it only renewed his hatred of the Western Lands and the Taisho family. He still had to fight the urge to spit upon the ground at the mention of the deceased General Inu no Taisho, and he still could not believe that the others, like him, who had been ripped away from their rightful home in the Eastern Lands could have ever come to call the Western Lands home. They were just as traitorous as the dogs he hated, and Jun would take great pleasure in licking their blood from between his paws.

The day that Master had found him once again was the happiest moment of Jun's life. Before that, he had been adrift in a sea of apathy, simply wandering from village to village and living off of the meat of mindless animals like a savage. But Master had given him a sense of purpose and direction: he was to acquire a trade, master that trade, infiltrate the Western Palace, and lie in wait until the day came that Master required his services. Eager to serve his _true_ homeland, Jun had jumped at the chance to earn the praise and respect of his new master. Even now, thinking about being able to _come home_ once again sent delicious shivers of pleasure down Jun's spine. _Home_. He would finally be coming home….

Kagome had never been so exhausted in her life. Even traveling all day searching for the Shikon Shards had not been this draining. Her normally loose top was profusely drenched in sweat and sticking to her back like a second skin, and her muscles scream in agony for her to stop making them move. And they hadn't even started any training yet! It was "just a warm-up," according to the too-cheerful kitsune general.

"Goddammit! I thought Kiyoko was the NICE one! But she's like one of those insanely perky and personal trainers that just never _ever_ stops," Kagome muttered to herself, forgetting just how good full demon ears could be.

"Not sure what a per-so-nul tray-nur is, but I assure you, I AM the nice one. My sister would have made you do 30," Kiyoko said in Kagome's ear as she half-jogged half-dragged herself around the dojo for the 20th time. The pink tails began swishing in amusement as the miko shrieked in surprise.

"Gah!" said Kagome, "I didn't think you could hear me! God what is it with you crazy demons and sneaking up on people?!"

"Ah ah ah," Kiyoko wagged her fingers at Kagome and smiled mischievously, "that will be another 5 laps for back-talk. The kitsune grinned even more broadly at the subsequent groan, and Rin (who was watching from a cushion on the sidelines) smothered a giggle, but Kiyoko still insisted that Kagome run the extra laps. It was all for the miko's own good. She was horribly out of shape, and Kiyoko was not sure if it was because of her humanity or because she had grown too comfortable in this time of peace. Either way, Kiyoko was determined to help this surprisingly entertaining little miko reach her full potential.

Not only did she seem to generally care about Rin, but Kiyoko could see that she clearly cared about all the residents of the castle, including the icy Lord Sesshomaru himself. The lord did not bestow his respect lightly, _especially_ upon humans, so for him to trust the miko to guard Rin said a lot about the kind of person she was.

However, she was going to need a lot of work. A LOT of work. But between herself and her sister Kyoto, Kiyoko was confident that they would have her whipped into shape as one of the most formidable human bodyguards in the Western Lands. She could never hope to match the speed and strength of any demon attackers, of course, but what she lacked in physical prowess she could make up for in defensive capabilities.

After all, within the walls of the castle, she did not need to best Rin's attackers, merely send out a distress signal and delay until backup arrived. That was why her endurance was of the utmost importance; being able to maintain her sensibilities and power for even as little as five more minutes could be the difference between an injury and a mortal wound, a foiled attack and a murder.

With that in mind, KIyoko set about running the miko ragged into the ground. Once she finished her laps, she did push-ups, then jumping jacks, then lunges, then more laps and more push-ups, until the miko was nearly trembling with exhaustion and could barely move her fingers much less lift her arms.

"Okay!" Kiyoko clapped her hands together excitedly as she chirped out her next instructions. "I think that is about it for me. Now it's Kyoto's turn!"

"Just… give me... a minute…" panted Kagome as she doubled over with her hands on her knees and sucked in air in a desperate attempt to catch her breath again.

"Will the enemy 'give you a minute' before they sever your head from your shoulders? WIll they let you pause to catch your breath before they stab Miss Rin through the stomach?" Kyoto's deeper, more deadpanned voice cut through the sounds of Kagome's gasping as the general gestured in her and Rin's direction.

Kagome heavily fought the urge to roll her eyes at the melodramatic comment, but instead just snapped "of course not, but it's only my first day! I'm not a soldier in your army."

Kyoto looked almost disappointed in her at her lack of urgency, and Kagome could not help the twinge that had nothing to do with the cramp in her side. However, the general merely responded with a grunt and began walking over to the wall of weapons opposite Rin and Kagome. She reached up and grabbed a sword, spinning lazily towards them with an almost devious look on her face.

"Miko," Kyoto practically purred with glee. "Prepare yourself."

That was all the warning that Kagome got as the kitsune disappeared in a blur of movement. Kagome threw up her hands in front of her face in anticipation of a cutting blow to her arms, but the sting of the blade never came. Instead Kyoko's voice rang out beside her, taunting her.

"What are you defending miko?" There was a dark smirk in the black-haired kitsune's voice, and Kagome gulped hard before turning her gaze towards the sound of said smirk. She couldn't stifle the gasp that escaped her.

Rin was sitting on the cushion staring up at Kagome with eyes as wide and round as teacups while Kyoto held the blunt side of the katana up to Rin's neck. The kitsune's midnight eyes burned into Kagome, as she hissed up at the miko.

" _This_ is why it doesn't matter if we are only at day one. If you take the easy way out, even for a moment, _people die._ People who are counting on you. People you love." Kyoto's sharp words were tempered with an eerily tender pat on Rin's head, and those midnight eyes seem to slip into a faraway gaze, as if remembering those she herself had failed to protect. With a shake of her head, the sharpened look returned, and she threw the blade and its sheath down at Kagome's feet.

"You might not like training. You may come to hate my sister and I. You may even come to wish you had never been brought here. But Lord Sesshomaru has placed a lot trust in you. Miss Rin has been here before, but never as a permanent resident, and never as a grown woman. As a child, she could be ignored and dismissed as a mere pet. But as a woman… well let us just say that there will be threats, mark my words. The time for peace has lasted too long, and it can all be struck down in an instant. Rin is the obvious choice for anyone seeking to hurt my Lord. He cannot have her by his side at all hours of the day anymore, and so it falls to you. _You_ must train and grow stronger, faster, and more vigilant. If you are not willing to do so, then step out of the way so that someone else can."

With those harsh words, Kyoto turned away and began going through a basic kata with her own katana. Kagome felt the knot in her stomach untie itself and felt determination replace the fear and the excuses. If Lord Sesshomaru trusted her with Rin, then that must mean that she could do this. After all, if there was anything that the two dog demons in her life could be counted on for, it was their brutal honesty.

"He wouldn't have made me train if he didn't think I could do this. Come on Kagome, you've got to show that smug demon what you're made of, and maybe you can wipe that damn smirk off that pretty face of his" Kagome gave herself a mini pep-talk, conveniently ignoring the dubious comment about Sesshomaru's beautiful facial features.

She bent over to pick up the sword and sheath, took a big breath, and followed Kyoto out onto the center of the dojo floor. Kyoto said nothing, but she slowed down her movements. Thumb up, turn the sheath, sword out, pinch the edge, sword in, and release. Thumb up, turn the sheath, sword out, pinch the edge, sword in, and release. Thumb up, turn the sheath…

 **End of Chapter**

A/N: I didn't originally intend to go into so much detail on Jun's backstory, but I think it turned out quite nicely.


	9. Chapter 9: The Reunion

**A/N:**

Sorry for such a long time in between updates. Inspiration didn't strike me until recently. But here it is! And hopefully there is more to come soon. Enjoy!

 **Chapter 9: The Reunion**

"No no no, you're doing it out of order." A quiet but stern voice could be heard filtering through the rice paper doors outside the dojo of the Western Shiro. "It's forward stab, back left slash, duck, and then slash right, NOT forward stab, slash right, duck, back left slash. Pay attention, you had this mastered yesterday." Kyoto's eyes narrowed as she observed the sweaty miko's sloppy movements.

Kagome's shoulders slumped forward and she let the tip of the sword rest on the floor of the training arena. She was nearing the end of her second week of training with the kitsune captains and found herself struggling to follow the steps she knew she already knew.

"I don't know what's wrong with me today, I'm just distracted. My mind keeps wandering after a few seconds." The scrape of two swords sliding into their sheaths could be heard. "I just keep wondering how the village is doing without me and how my friends from outside the village are fairing. I love Rin, but the only time I see her is at mealtimes. Otherwise, she's in her lessons and I'm either training or alone in my rooms. I guess I'm just… lonely." Kagome mused. "Life in the castle is not as glamorous as the movies make it seem. Don't you ever feel… restless Kyoto?"

Setting aside the fact that she has no idea what these moo-vees were, Kyoto said only, "I am devoted to serving my Lord. There is no time for… indulgences." She said this last word with a sneer, her upper lip curling around the unfamiliar word.

"Still," Kagome waved dismissively, "there must be something for me to do for fun." When Kyoko looked at her with a stone-faced expression, she teased. "You know? Fun? It's spelled F-U-N? Means: to do something pleasurable or enjoyable?"

Kyoto smoothed the silky fur of her black tails primly. "I am well aware of what it means Ka-go-me, I simply do not participate in such… foolish endeavors."

"Well," Kagome clapped her hands together. "That settles it then. You" she pointed at her recalcitrant kitsune friend. "are going to get your sister. I," she pointed to herself, "am going to get Rin. And we," she gestured vaguely between them, "are going out for a night on the town." At the puzzled look that garned, Kagome elaborated. "Uhhh, we are going into the village to have fun. Like, go shopping or some other form of entertainment?"

Kyoto arched a perfectly shaped eyebrow but simply said "I shall ask Lord Sesshomaru for his permission."

Kagome walked away muttering something that sounded suspiciously like "arrogant dog… need his permission… grown woman," and Kyoto could merely fight the urge to roll her eyes fondly at the feisty miko's antics.

A few minutes later, Kyoto entered her lord's study, bowing and waiting for permission to rise. Once given, she gave her report of the miko's progress, disposition, and general welfare. "The miko is making nominal progress with her training. She has mastered the basic kata and we are set to begin sparring tomorrow. She is naturally clumsy, but she makes up for her lack of grace with sheer stubbornness." Kyoto allowed herself a small smirk at the miko's expense. "She refuses to retire for the day until she has mastered a set of moves, even if it costs her blisters or aching muscles. She is doing as well as can be expected for an untrained human. She shows great aptitude for archery. We've extended her range by 20 yards and have begun incorporating moving targets. The miko and I have also discussed the possibility of creating a bow or arrows using her reiki powers in case she is ever without them. She is unaware of the exact technique, but she has sent missives to her mentor in Edo asking if such a thing can be done."

"Good. What else?" Sesshomaru asked.

Kyoto hesitated. "Permission to speak freely, my lord?" At his nod, she continued. "Kagome is… lonely my lord. She is no soldier, content to fill her life with training." Kyoto tapped her chin thoughtfully." Interestingly enough, it appears that humans are also a very social species who crave companionship and what we would call pack."

"I have already made arrangements to have her pack brought here for a visit. Is that all?"

If Kiyoko was surprised at her lord's thoughtfulness, she hid it well. "No, my lord. Kagome wishes to visit the village shops with Rin. She ah… called it going out?"

Sesshomaru weighed the security risks against the potential happiness it would bring his two charges. Not that he would ever reveal to anyone that he was overly concerned with their happiness. He couldn't have people thinking that he had somehow become weakened by their presence in the Western palace. "You and Kiyoto will accompany them."

It was not a question, but Kiyoko nodded her assent anyway. With a wave, he dismissed her, and she strolled down the hall to tell Kagome the good news.

Kagome and Rin chattered happily back to the castle, each carrying a basket full of random goods from the village shops. At first, Kagome had held back from buying anything, but when Rin had mentioned that Lord Sesshomaru had a running tab with the villagers and not to worry about it, she decided "what the heck" and splurged on some items. She comforted herself with the knowledge that Sesshomaru could definitely afford it. And besides, it benefitted the shopkeepers to have their lord's coin spent there. So as far as Kagome was concerned, it was a win-win situation.

Kagome had bought several yards of hardy, demon-made fabric for Sango and Miroku. Kami knows their children were constantly outgrowing things, so maybe this fabric would hold up a little better. For Kohaku, some weapons' polish that would protect them from rusting and dulling. For Shippo, she bought a set of golden fox pendants with emeralds for eyes. And for herself, she picked out a set of daggers that she was hoping to get one of the twins to teach her to use. Kagome had tried to get the kitsune sisters to pick out something for themselves, but they both declined, saying it would be inappropriate to spend their lord's money while on duty. Still, Kagome asked for their opinions on a few hair ornaments and made sure to purchase the two that seem to catch Kiyoko's and Kiyoto's eyes respectively.

Kagome was in the middle of asking Kiyoko how she could go about mailing off her gifts when she caught a flash of red hair from the top of the castle stairs.

"Is- is that…?" Kagome stammered. "SHIPPO!" She dropped all her purchases in a heartbeat and took the steps two at a time until she practically tackled her adoptive son to the ground. Shippo just grinned at her and squeezed, his two tails twitching furiously behind him in excitement. "Is that a second tail? Shut up! I'm so proud of you! You must tell me everything about your schooling! How are your classes? Are you getting along with everyone? What spells have you learned so far? And what are they feeding you there? You've grown another foot since I last saw you!" Even as the questions tumbled from her mouth, Kagome's heart clenched to realize that her little Shippo now towered above her.

Just then, Rin caught up to them and noticed who was standing next to Shippo. "Kohaku! What brings you here to the Western Palace? I hope that Sango and Miroku are doing well?" She smiled brightly up at him and placed a hand on his muscular forearm.

Kohaku smiled shyly in return as a light blush colored the freckles on his tanned cheeks. "Lady Rin, Lady Kagome. It is so wonderful to see you both again. Shippo stopped by our demon slayer village on his way to the palace and asked if I would care to join him." He shrugged nonchalantly." I decided the trip would be a nice change of pace. And besides, I was hoping to ask Lord Sesshomaru permission to observe his army's training exercises so that I might incorporate them into our regimen back at the village. Oh, Lady Kagome, Sango and Miroku send their love, as do Himari, Ichika, Riku, and Sora."

"Oh!" Kagome exclaimed as she slapped herself on the forehead. "Where are my manners?! Shippo, Kohaku, this is Kyoto and Kiyoko." The sisters bowed their heads slightly in polite greeting. "They are captains in Sesshomaru's army. So Kohaku, you'll definitely be seeing more of them if Sesshomaru grants you permission to watch them train." If Kagome saw the way Shippo was practically staring a hole through Kyoto, she pretended not to notice. Instead she lead the group inside, talking up a storm and merrily showing them all of the gifts she had gotten everyone. It was a happy occasion, but not everyone who witnessed their reunion was content.

When word of the pair's arrival reached Sesshomaru in his study, he was in the middle of reviewing a pile of status reports. He thought longingly to the days when he could use Naraku as an excuse to freely roam the magnificent territory that was the Western lands. Now he was chained to this castle and to the tedious routine that came with it. He resisted the urge to sigh before he abandoned his scrolls and headed towards the training grounds where his soldiers were no doubt sparring. Perhaps a good workout would help him reduce some of the tension that had been building since returning to the palace.

Oddly enough, Sesshomaru found himself hoping that his guests would cure the miko of her lingering despondency. He ignored the little voice inside his head that questioned why he cared so much about the feelings of his dead brother's very human, widowed mate. It was merely his duty as pack leader to ensure that the needs of his pack were met. Yes, duty and nothing more…

Growling under his breath uncharacteristically at his asinine line of thinking, Sesshomaru ordered three of his best fighters to attack him simultaneously. The three youkai shared a look of nervousness with each other, but did as they were ordered. 10 minutes later, all three were being dragged off the field in varying states of consciousness and injury.

"Another three," growled Sesshomaru. The next group proceeded more cautiously than the first, but they too were handled with cold precision. This went on for another hour until Sesshomaru had worked his way through almost half the army. Utterly bored and frustrated (though his outward expression remained unchanged), Sesshomaru barked at General Shou to up their training sessions to twice a day as they were clearly lacking in discipline to be so easily defeated. There were grumbles of discontent at that proclamation, but a sharp look from the Western Lord's amber eyes quelled them all in an instant.

He broke his gaze with his army as the smell of sakurasou wafted in his direction. He turned to see his captains, Rin, the miko and her guests watching from the steps that led down to the training grounds. The miko had plopped down on the floor in a most undignified manner, and she was currently shamelessly giggling (at his expense no doubt).

In a blur of movements too fast to track, Sesshomaru towered above her. "Something amuses you miko?" He smirked in pure male satisfaction at the gasp he elicited from her at his sudden appearance.

"Yes" she smiled unabashedly at him as she extended a hand for him to help her up. "Those poor demons having to deal with you in a bad mood."

Her unquestioning trust in him still made the aloof dog demon uncomfortable, but he grasped her hand nonetheless. As Sesshomaru pulled her gently to her feet, he could not stop the frisson of heat that crawled up his arm from the warm touch of her hand. It was calloused in some places from years of archery and manual labor in the garden, yet somehow still delicate within the clutches of his smooth, deadly claws. What should have been an off-putting reminder of their different stations in life (he, the demon Lord and she, the human miko) only served to raise his estimation of her. He knew of few humans who worked as diligently as she. Sesshomaru idly wondered what her hands would feel like as they traveled over his body. Would they slowly explore every inch of his flawless skin? Or would they be fast and hungry to please him? His eyes betrayed nothing, but he fought down his youki's urge to flare in response to his inappropriate line of thinking.

"Miko, I am not in a bad mood. I am merely… dissatisfied with their training." He stared down at her with narrowed eyes, not even realizing that he had yet to let go of her hand though she was already on her feet.

"Oh really?" She arched an infuriating eyebrow at him. "Then why is half your training ground destroyed and half your men grumbling in pain?"

"If they were sufficiently prepared, then they would not perform so pitifully."

"Well it's not their fault that you're practically unstoppable!" She chided him.

"And it is not my fault that they are so woefully inadequate so as to not even be able to defend themselves for ten minutes," he replied smugly, his pride not overlooking the fact that she had complimented his prowess as a fighter (albeit grudgingly). He dropped her hand, turned, and walked away dismissively, knowing that this would enrage the feisty miko.

Predictably, he heard the moment Kagome began to sputter at the indignity. She stormed after him and they bickered all the way back inside the castle.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group merely stood there gaping in surprise at what had just occurred. Shippo spoke up first.

"Did I just see them… flirting?" He struggled not to laugh hysterically.

Kyoto merely looked thoughtful as Kiyoko shrugged and said, "Perhaps my lord is in need of release and he enjoys what he sees. She is rather attractive."

"Kiyoko!" Shippo turned as red as his hair. "That is my mother you are talking about. She is not just some concubine for Sesshomaru to take advantage of!"

"Hey! Lord Sesshomaru would never be so dishonorable!" Rin protested in defense of her adoptive father.

Kohaku merely blushed even more deeply than Shippo had. He had always been a quiet, gentle boy, and he was embarrassed to even be discussing the act of intercourse in general, much less discussing it in such a public place about two people they knew. "Uhm, can we go inside now? I would rather not discuss the personal affairs of Lord Sesshomaru and Lady Kagome."

As they went inside, they failed to notice Jun's bright yellow eyes glowing with malice and boring holes in their backs. Master would know of this development immediately. He was sure that Master would have many plans to use the miko in his quest to break the mongrel Lord of the West. The poison was almost complete. It was only a matter of time before they struck at the heart of the Western Lord. The only question was, who would they strike? The miko or the girl?

 **End Chapter**


	10. Chapter 10: The Betrayal

**A/N**

: Holy cow, the last chapter got so many views! Thank y'all so much for showing the story so much love. Please feel free to leave a review offering suggestions about my writing, predictions, or compliments! It makes a writer feel great to know that her writing makes people react.

On a side note, it has been pointed out that Kagome isn't very polite in terms of titles or proper manners and whatnot. I am clearly no expert on Japanese culture, I will admit. My portrayal of the characters comes strictly from my knowledge of the English dubbed shows, so if it is inaccurate, I apologize, but it's just a fanfiction, so I'm not going to invest hours of research into it. Kagome doesn't address Sesshomaru by a title in the series, and at this point in my story (after more than 10 years of being sort of allies and years of being family), I doubt she's going to start using it now. Also, the fact that they've become even closer in the years after Inuyasha's death makes it seem logical to me that she is going to be more comfortable and take more liberties with him than she did in the series. But that's just my take on it.

Anyway, sorry for the long note. Enjoy this chapter! Things really start picking up from here on out.

 **Chapter 10: The Betrayal**

Three days passed after Shippo and Kohaku arrived, Sesshomaru decided to throw a welcome dinner for the two guests, so he invited (i. e. ordered) the entire court to attend and had the kitchen staff serve a variety of courses and copious amounts of saké. He told himself that it was only to uphold the conventions of etiquette, and that it had nothing to do with impressing a certain odd miko who was currently laughing merrily and clapping her hands in delight as her son showed off a variety of his newly learned kitsune tricks.

Then again, he had also tried telling himself that her skin was not glowing from the happiness of being reunited with her packmates, that her hair only looked so glossy because of the lighting in the dinner hall, and that her naturally pink lips looked strange compared to other courtesans' artificially blood-red lips. As it was, he still found himself forcing his eyes away from those lips, as his gaze periodically wandered back to her of their own accord.

There was no denying that she brought a degree of levity and festivity that was usually lacking in his palace. Ordinarily, these dinners were a quiet, stuffy affair. Everyone was usually too afraid of offending their stoic lord to show much personality. But the miko knew no such fear and struck up all manner of conversations with those around her. Kohaku was regaling Rin with tales of his most dangerous missions, Shippo had roped Kyoto and Kiyoko into performing magnificent works of illusion with him, and even General Shou (who normally detested such events and invented excuses to bow out early or avoid these dinners altogether) had been drawn into a discussion on something the miko called eko-locashun. Between her coaxing and the alcohol, the meal actually managed to approach a festive atmosphere, much to the chagrin of the Western Lord.

Still, it was not all bad. His canine instincts were settled by having all of his pack together and content, and the saké made Kagome's cheeks flush in a way that made his veins run hot and his normally controlled mind run wild. As if she knew the subject of his thoughts, she turned to look at him and smiled, her glance somehow both alluring and yet somehow devoid of the guile Sesshomaru had become accustomed to over the centuries of having demonesses attempt to lure him into their bed and entrap him into a mating agreement.

How was it that he could have his choice of any exotic beauty or deadly demoness in the lands, and yet he found his head being turned by his half-brother's former lover? A human, and a miko, no less? Was Inuyasha even now mocking him from the afterlife for coveting first his sword, then his pack, and now his mate? The demon lord resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose. How had his life been so thoroughly turned upside down in such a relatively short time by a single human woman?

Soon enough, the dinner wound down and guests began excusing themselves and thanking their lord for the exquisite food and generous alcohol. Rin was practically falling asleep in her food, so Kohaku offered to escort her back to her rooms. Shippo hugged Kagome and bowed to Lord Sesshomaru, bidding them both a good night and saying that he would see them in the morning. That just left Kagome and Sesshomaru. The Taiyoukai rose silently and said stiffly, "I will escort you back to your rooms."

"Thank you, that's very kind of you," she smiled brightly up at him, and he found his chest feeling uncomfortably tight.

Not wanting her to mistake his actions for kindness, he added with a smirk, "far from it, I merely did not want to waste my servants' time later on when you inevitably get lost and end up in the kitchens again."

"Why you- that was one time!" She sputtered and then sighed. "You're never going to let me live that down are you?"

"Never," he said as he offered her his arm. The walked for a time in surprisingly companionable silence, and he eyed her from the corner of his field of vision. Her servant Hatsu had chosen well tonight. The kimono was a deep midnight blue with red and white flowers spilling down the front, and her red sash was matched by a large flower in her simple updo. It was rare for her to dress so formally, and yet he strangely found himself missing her usual attire.

Making a spur of the moment decision (something he normally avoided at all costs), he took her down a different corridor than the one that led to their respective rooms. Instead, they ended up outside in his private garden. He was rewarded with her small gasp of pleasure and surprise at the sight. There were enchantments in this area to control the climate, so this was where Sesshomaru housed his collection of rare and exotic plants. He led her to a bench at the base of his extremely rare tree-of-heaven, the only one of its kind in all four territories. She looked up at the marvelous night sky and sighed in contentment before leaning over to rest her head upon his unarmored shoulder. To the normally icy dog demon, it felt like warmth radiated out from where she touched him to the rest of his body.

Sesshomaru could remember a time when taking such liberties with his person would have resulted in a head rolling on the floor, but he found himself surprisingly unbothered by her touch. In fact, over the past few weeks, he had begun to seek her out more and more, for no reason other than that he found her company to be the least tedious part of his day.

True, he had once been a heartless and dispassionate demon, but his walls had begun to fall over the years, beginning with a dirty little orphan girl who did not know how to take no for an answer. After that, the battle against Naraku made him give the ragamuffin band of warriors his begrudging respect. Then Inuyasha's death forced his pack to expand to include them, and in caring for his grieving widow, Kagome had somehow managed to earn his friendship. To add insult to injury, he was now forced to admit that he found the miko attractive. So he allowed her this familiarity where no others would be tolerated, simply because he could not (or rather would not) refuse her. He ignored the voice in his head that asked him why that was; he told himself that she was merely a curiosity, an itch that once scratched would be sated. He had no idea just how wrong he was. But for now, they sat quietly and took in the starry night devoid of moonlight.

At last, she broke the silence.

"The new moon always makes me think of Inuyasha." She paused before asking, "do you ever think of him?"

The feeling of ice hardening spread through Sesshomaru at the mention of his deceased half-brother. "He died an honorable death protecting his pack. And yet," he hesitated before adding, "it was- too soon a death."

"I feel sometimes that it was my fault," she said almost too softly for him to hear, even with his superior hearing. "I should have been strong enough to protect myself, then- then maybe he wouldn't have had to put himself in such danger." He could hear her choking back tears now and smell the salt gathering in her eyes. "It's my fault he's dead."

"Miko," he said flatly. "Cease these foolish tears.. my brother would not have allowed you to fight those women even if you had possessed the skills to stop them. I must confess, I do not understand why he would not have encouraged you to train further after the defeat of Naraku. I suspect that he simply preferred you rely on him to be the protector, and thus, did not want you to be able to protect yourself."

Kagome stared at him slack jawed, not only because of the sincerity of his words, but also because it was easily the longest speech she had ever gotten from him at one time. Then, she smiled unexpectedly at him. "Thank you Sesshomaru. That strangely makes me feel better. I still feel guilty, but perhaps you're right. Either way, thanks to you providing me with training I won't be made to be the weakling ever again." She stood up and clapped her hands together firmly. "Now then, no more talk of sad things. I think it's time for you to show me the rest of these beautiful gardens. That is," she said shyly, "if you don't mind. I don't want you to feel obligated to babysit me just because I'm feeling a little down."

Sesshomaru said nothing. He merely offered up his arm again and inclined his head to the corner of the garden. They walked like that for a time, neither one feeling the need to say much because they were both lost to their musings. Eventually Kagome began to yawn, and Sesshomaru took that as a sign to leave the garden and take her to her room. When they arrived, she thanked him for his company tonight and for honoring Shippo and Kohaku with the dinner.

"Hn," was all he replied. He did not want to admit that it was out of character for him to have done that, so he simply remained silent as she opened the shoji door.

She shook her head at him a grinned as she entered her rooms. "The more things change..." she thought to herself.

"Hmm, why is the room so dark? Hatsu usually leaves a candle on for me when I stay out late." Kagome fumbled around for the firestone before finally striking a spark that caught the wick on fire. She turned to head towards the bedroom before letting out a high pitched shriek that was heard throughout the entire west wing of the castle.

She was still screaming as Sesshomaru came bursting through the screen door, even as his eyes became seeped in red, and even as poison began dripping from his claws. Her screams turned to loud, gasping sobs as Shippo came in and asked what was wrong. She could not speak, but merely ran to him and buried her face in his shoulder. As Shippo's eyes were drawn to Sesshomaru's line of sight, he muttered a curse he learned from Inuyasha and squeezed his mother tighter to him. On the wall, someone had used blood to write two words:

YOU'RE NEXT

Shippo was horrified to realize that the blood had come from an older human servant whose body had been posed sitting up on the floor beneath the message. Claw marks raked her entire front, her throat had been slit, and her face was now permanently frozen in an expression of terror, mouth slightly open as if to scream for help.

"Who would do such a thing?" Shippo asked, trying to keep his voice from shaking.

"It should have been me, it was supposed to be me," Kagome wailed. "Oh God, Hatsu I'm so sorry I'm so sorry."

Sesshomaru turned, his face and poison firmly under control now. "Miko. I will not tell you again not to take blame for what is the fault of others. The fool who dared to threaten what is under my protection is responsible. They will be found. They will be dealt with." His eyes burned like hot coals and his elongated fangs glittered dangerously in the darkened room.

Kagome was not normally a violent person, but she hoped fiercely that whoever had done this to poor sweet Hatsu got what was coming to them. She felt absolutely confident that Sesshomaru would find them and that justice would be served.

"Kagome," Sesshomaru said quietly. "Go to Rin's room and watch over her. Shippo, you and Kohaku will stand watch outside the room until I send two guards to take over."

Kagome thought to protest being hidden away like a damsel in distress, but his tone brooked no disagreement. Besides, she oddly got the sense that he would feel better knowing that she and Rin were safe. Instead she nodded and put a hand on his upper arm and squeezed as she fixed him with a steely gaze.

"Find them Sesshomaru. Make them regret the day they crossed the Lands of the West."

 **End Chapter 10**


	11. Chapter 11: The Hunt

**A/N: Love the reviews! They really made my day and motivated me to get this chapter out. Sorry it's so short this time, but it just came to a natural stopping place. Y'all are the best 3**

 **Chapter 11: The Hunt**

Sesshomaru was livid. He had not felt this incensed since Rin had been kidnapped by that filthy half-breed Naraku. Whoever had dared to desecrate the sanctity of his home would pay dearly. But first, he had to reign in his anger.

His instincts were howling at him to rend something from limb to limb in vengeance. The sound of Kagome's scream was still echoing in his ears, and he could still remember the sharp lance of fear that ran through him at the realization that she was in danger. As it was, the pungent stench of her sweat, vomit, and fear still coated the inside of his nostrils, even to the point of covering up the smell of the servant's blood. On second thought… why had he not smelled the blood from the hallway? His senses should have alerted him of the smell from several hundred yards away, and yet Sesshomaru could not smell anything from the fresh corpse though it lay directly before him.

He forced his heart rate to slow, his claws to retract their poison, and his eyes to return to their normal color. Once he had found a measure of calm, he began to take action.

Sesshomaru turned to Majime, who had come running as soon as Shippo had escorted Kagome to Rin's rooms. "Tell General Shou to lock down the perimeter and have the guards search for intruders. Have them captured... alive," he cracked several knuckles in anticipation, and Majime shuddered involuntarily at the vengeful burn in her lordship's eyes, "and summon Captain Kyoto and Captain Kiyoko." There was sorcery involved that was blocking the scent of the attacker. and he would require their expertise to undermine the enchantments.

With a terrified bow, Majime dashed off to carry out her lord's demands. She sent up a silent prayer to the Kamis that the attacker would be found immediately so that they could all feel safe again. But then again, she felt assured that it was only a matter of time before Lord Sesshomaru found them and justice was served.

Over in Rin's sitting room, Kagome was pacing furiously back and forth as Rin poured some tea with shaking hands. Kohaku and Shippo were talking in hushed tones from their post at the door, their eyes darting periodically to the frightened mikos inside the room.

"Mama, have a seat. Drink some tea," Rin said gently. Kagome sat and accepted a cup, but could not bring herself to drink. Instead, she stared at the rim of the cup, a million questions and thoughts running through her mind.

"Ugh, how can I just sit here and do nothing while everyone else is in danger because of me? Why HAVE they attacked me? Can't a girl just grow old in peace? I thought I was done with all this dangerous crap. Poor Hatsu. I can't believe she's gone. What if they attack again? What if I hadn't walked back with Sesshomaru? Oh no, what if they try to attack Rin or Sesshomaru next?" But Kagome said none of this out loud, not wanting to scare Rin even more than she already was.

Instead, they sat in silence as she watched her tea grow cold.

Jun suppressed the urge to yowl in frustration. "That stupid miko bitch was supposed to be in her rooms by then. What the hell could have delayed her for so long after dinner? Master will not be pleased that I could not acquire her. I must make sure that my next attack does not fail, or Master will be most exacting in his punishment.

An idea came to him, and he grinned a terrible grin that promised evil and agony. He slunk away to make the necessary preparations, disappearing like a shadow into the darkened hallway. The last things to disappear were his pale yellow eyes and the chilling chuckle of laughter that escaped him.

The kitsune captains arrived quickly on the scene of the murder, concern evident in both their eyes though they did not dare voice their queries until given permission to do so by Lord Sesshomaru. Kiyoko stifled a gasp at seeing the corpse of the human servant, but Kyoto remained silent and stoic in the face of such violence.

Sesshomaru wasted no time with pleasantries. "You will undo the masking spell."

Both sisters nodded, and Kyoto spoke for them. "Yes my lord." she paused before adding reluctantly, "it might go more quickly if we enlisted the help of Lady Kagome's kit, Shippo. He is too young to recognize the magic, but he has some power we could harness for the counter-spell."

Kiyoko chimed in, "and he would benefit from the experience. He had mentioned being behind on his training due to having spent much of his formative years chasing after Naraku with Lord Inuyasha and Lady Kagome without any kitsune influence." She said slyly, "I'm sure Lady Kagome would be most ah appreciative if you were to allow us to take him under our tutelage."

Sesshomaru blinked. The idea was not without merit, but he was not comfortable with the smirk that his captain was currently throwing his way. He tried to pretend that what she was insinuating offended him, but he simply could not bring himself to admonish her for overstepping her bounds. The saying "lie to others if you must, but never lie to yourself," crossed his mind.

Instead of acknowledging what she was so clearly dying for him to refute or confirm, he merely nodded and said, "it will be done," before smoothly walking through the door and down the hall to fetch the kit himself. He told himself that he was only doing it to ensure that the twins could begin the process of undoing the magic, but something in him acknowledged that he wanted to assure himself of his pack's safety, and that his prickles of unease would not recede until he had done so.

When he arrived, he spoke briefly with the demon slayer to verify that everything had been calm in his absence. He then informed Shippo that he was needed in the other room to assist the kitsune captains. The young fox demon's eyes grew wide.

"You need my help?" he exclaimed, his chest puffing up with unconscious pride.

"You are kitsune, yes?" Sesshomaru asked mockingly. "Then you must learn kitsune things."

He then proceeded to do the Sesshomaru thing, which was to completely ignore the fact that he had just done something… nice. Shippo shook his head as he realized just how similar he and Inuyasha were in that regard. Rather than press the issue with the intimidating lord, Shippo merely bowed and went inside to tell Kagome where he was going. Sesshomaru followed and wordlessly watched the two interact.

The priestess hugged her adoptive son fiercely, ruffled his hair (much to the fox's embarrassment), and told him to be safe. As the kit left, she turned to him with her large eyes shimmering with unshed tears.

Kagome fought the urge to throw herself into his arms. She reminded herself that he was not likely to appreciate the gesture of concern. Inuyasha had been much the same way when they had first met, skittish and untrusting of casual contact.

Instead she wrung her hands in nervousness and blurted out, "did Hatsu have family here? Somebody should inform them."

Unsure of how to respond to that, Sesshomaru merely arched a slender eyebrow and replied, "I do not know. I will have my head of servants find out."

"Oh." Silence followed.

Sesshomaru was unused to not knowing how to handle the situation, so he decided the most direct approach would be best. "You are well?"

Kagome gave him a weak smile in appreciation for his concern. "Physically I'm fine, but mentally I'm feeling exhausted. Rin fell asleep a while ago, but I'm honestly too scared to sleep. I just keep thinking of poor Hatsu lying there looking so… broken. She wasn't a threat to anyone; how could someone just discard her like a piece of trash?" Tears began slipping down her cheeks, but she made no move to wipe them away. She stared relentlessly into Sesshomaru's eyes, and he found himself unable to tear his gaze away.

He said nothing. Instead he remembered how much Rin appreciated comforting touches when something was upsetting her. He placed a clawed hand on her shoulder and hesitated before squeezing gently. She immediately leaned into his hand and reached a hand up to rest upon his.

"Thank you," she murmured. Her voice sounded strained with repressed emotions and sleepiness.

Sesshomaru made a split-second decision in that moment. "Rest miko. I will watch over you and Rin until you fall asleep." Though phrased as a command, if Kagome squinted just right, it resembled a rather... sweet gesture. Not that anything about Sesshomaru could be describe as sweet. Still, there was no denying that the aloof demon lord had a way of making a girl feel safe.

Rather than fighting to stay awake, she nodded in agreement and led him into the room where Rin was already fast asleep. The poor girl was clinging so tightly to her pillow that her knuckles were white, and the sound of her tiny whimpers filled the air. Kagome smoothed the crinkled skin on her forehead, and watched as the tension slowly eased out of her. Smilingly fondly at first Rin and then Sesshomaru, the priestess got under the duvet and snuggled right up against her for warm.

Though he said absolutely nothing, the nearly tangible presence of Sesshomaru was enough to make her close her eyes and let a troubled sleep overtake her.


	12. Chapter 12: Capture

**Chapter 12: Capture**

Three days had passed since the attack, and yet the culprit had still not been apprehended. Kiyoko, Kiyoto, and Shippo's task was proving more difficult than anticipated, and they were still working to undo the enchantments that masked the attacker's scent upon the crime scene. Sesshomaru went about the castle in a near constant state of ill-contained rage. More than one soldier had suffered his wrath and had been left limping after they brought him news of what he viewed as failure on their part. All in the castle knew that he truly considered the failure his, but none were foolish enough to even whisper such suspicions for fear of their master's spies catching wind of what could be considered tantamount to treason.

Rin and Kagome were still confined to Rin's rooms, and they were beginning to get restless and chafe at the the seemingly endless incarceration. Earlier, Majime had brought them a pot of tea, along with some steamed rice, miso soup, and grilled fish. Though neither had much of an appetite, they both managed a cup of tea and a few bites of the food before pushing the dishes away and discussing the events from three days ago in hushed tones.

"Who do you think could have done such a horrible thing? Who would want to attack you, Mama?" Rin's eyes filled with tears at the thought of her mother being slain in what should have been the safest place in all of Japan. "And why? What would they have to gain by your d-death?" She stammered.

"I don't know sweetie. If this was back in my shard-hunting days, I'd say it was to get my pieces of the Shikon Jewel or because of my special ability to sense them. But it's been so long since Naraku was defeated… and I-Inuyasha died." Kagome's voice tripped briefly over her deceased husband's name. "I just don't see why someone would want revenge after all this time."

"Well whatever the reason, Lord Sesshomaru will keep you safe. He will find the one responsible for Hatsu's death," Rin said confidently.

Kagome smiled uneasily at Rin and merely said, "you're right, I just hope he does it quickly." She slid open the shoji door that led to the hallway, and poked her head through the doorway. "I love you, but I'm getting tired of being cooped up in here."

"Yes, me-" a thump interrupted the soft sound of Rin's reply, and the sweet young woman crumbled to the floor in a heap.

Kagome whipped around hurriedly and shouted Rin's name repeatedly as she tried to revive the girl. She quickly sprang into action. First, she checked Rin's neck for a pulse. The barely detectable thud of a heartbeat that she found alarmed her. Second, she flared her miko powers brightly as a signal to those that recognized her power signature that there was immediate danger about and help was needed. Third, she leaned over Rin's mouth to check for breathing. When she felt the faint heat of breathing on her cheek, she sighed in relief. That relief quickly vanished when she realized that Rin's breathing sounded wet and sticky, as if fluid was filling her lungs. The sudden onset of these symptoms could only mean one thing: poison.

Grimly, Kagome held her hands over Rin's chest, closed her eyes, and tried to call her powers slowly into her palms. Once she felt the familiar, soothing burn, she directed it to seep beneath Rin's skin and down into the lungs. She could almost see the gray muck that clung to the inside of Rin's poisoned organs, and Kagome held back a gasp as she realized that it was eerily similar to Naraku's miasma. "That would explain why I wasn't affected even though we've been eating and drinking the same things. My powers have always protected me from his poisonous gas, but Rin isn't nearly as strong a miko as me, and she hasn't gotten that far in her training either."

Pushing those troubling thoughts aside, Kagome focused on purifying the poison that was wreaking havoc on her adoptive daughter's body. It felt like hours had passed, but it was probably no more than a few minutes before Rin began breathing more deeply and her heartbeat had strengthened almost back to normal. The girl remained unconscious, but at least Rin was stabilized. Still, Kagome did not stop pouring her miko energy in until she felt Rin's powers finally sluggishly rising to meet her own. Only then could she withdraw and wipe the sweat from her furrowed brow.

It was at that moment that Kagome felt her metaphorical hackles rise as her neck began tingling with the feeling of being watched. She turned around and realized with a gasp that they were not alone in the room. One of the healers from the castle, Jun she believed he was called, was standing in the corner of the room to the right of the doorway, looking confused as she locked eyes with him.

Confusion quickly gave way to panic as he realized that the miko could somehow see through his enchantment of invisibility. "Impossible," he hissed to himself. "Both wenches should be dead. The poison was supposed to be infallible."

All Kagome caught was the muttered word "posion," and that was enough to arouse her suspicions. Still, she needed to stall for time (what was taking them so long?), so she feigned ignorance and forced herself to remain calm and keep her breathing at an even keel. Still, she subtly positioned herself in front of Rin's vulnerable body.

With a gratingly fake voice, Kagome said, "oh thank goodness you're here Jun, there's something wrong with Lady Rin, you must fetch Lord Sesshomaru immediately."

With a horrible glint in his eyes, Jun replied, "why do I not simply attend to the lady myself while you fetch milord yourself?" Deadly white fangs glittered dangerously as they poked out of lips that were pulled back into a sneer. He took a step closer, and watched as the miko's eyes unconsciously darted from the door to his claws and back up to his slitted eyes.

Kagome began to realize that something wasn't right. "Somebody should have been here by now," she thought grimly. "I sent that flare up almost 10 minutes ago. There's no way that Sesshomaru or Shippo wouldn't have made it across the palace by now. There must be a barrier of some kind either trapping my energy in or keeping them out. Either way, it's going to take time to break, time that Rin and I don't have."

Kagome subtly cast her own barrier of protection over Rin's body, and gathered her courage. She knew that she was only going to get one shot at this. She had to lure him in closer and use the element of surprise to her advantage, just like Kiyoko and Kyoto had drummed into her over the past few weeks. Both their lives depended on it.

She plastered a look of ignorance onto her face and said, "oh thank you Jun. I'll go get Lord Sesshomaru right away." She grudgingly bowed and began to walk towards the door. Just as she passed him however, she slid the daggers she had concealed under the sleeves of her miko garb. Before Jun could finish turning around, she had plunged both daggers as far as she could between the ribs of his thoracic cavity. She felt one blade puncture the back of his lungs, and she channeled as much of her not inconsiderable powers through the daggers as she could.

Jun was immobilized by the sheer pain that ripped through him as the purification burned away his youki inch by inch. His demon energy rose up to save him, unknowingly cancelling the enchantment that had kept out Kagome's cavalry. As Sesshomaru came barreling through the walls with blood red eyes and jagged purple markings, he witnessed the miko viciously twisting the knives in deeper before unleashing even more energy upon the traitor.

Jun fell to his knees and shrieked to his would-be lord for mercy. Sesshomaru's only response was to gut him like a fish, taking immense satisfaction in splitting the cat demon from the navel to the nape of the neck. Kagome flinched in numb disgust as blood spurted out from the now-dead neko and landed on her rapidly paling cheek.

She gazed up at Sesshomaru in exhaustion, and just as her eyes rolled up into the back of her head, he could just barely catch her whispered words, "I knew you'd come."

As he caught the falling woman in his arms, Shippo came barreling into the room, gasping for air. Sesshomaru looked up at him, and Shippp was struck by the normally icy dog demon's eyes as they flitted back and forth between their usual amber and feral red.

The kit held up his hands in a non-threatening manner and said quietly but firmly, "Sesshomaru, just let me check on Rin and Kagome okay?" When Sesshomaru still let a growl escape, Shippo allowed his worry to come through in his voice, "please Sesshomaru, I need to see that my mother and my- my sister are okay."

At hearing the kitsune refer to the two human women as such, Sesshomaru's instincts were suddenly reminded that the kitsune was pack, and could be trusted. With great effort, he beat back the instinct to drag both women further into the room where he could protect them, like a father would a pup. Instead, he inclined his head magnanimously and closed his eyes as Shippo kneeled over Rin and waited until the urge to burrow passed.

When the dog demon next opened his eyes, the red had been banished and only the amber remained.

When he spoke, it was with only a trace of the husky growl of his dog form.

"Fetch a healer. Then inform General Shou that the attacker has been captured, and that he is to report here immediately."

His last command promised pain.

"Also, fetch me the Tenseiga."

Shippo shuddered at the thought of what would be done to the neko demon now that it had been discovered as a traitor to the Western Lands. Sure that Kagome and Rin would be safe now, he stepped over the dead bodies of the guards outside Rin's room and hurried to carry out Lord Sesshomaru's orders.

Finally alone, Sesshomaru gave in to some of his protective urges and nuzzled Rin's face. He did not even notice Kagome's barrier, which had impressively enough maintained its protections even after Kagome had fainted. As always, her miko power simply melted under his mere touch and enveloped him with an almost welcoming warmth.

This physical contact served multiple purposes. First, it erased the filthy taint of the cat demon's enchantments and scent from her body, returning her to her normal smell. Second, it scent marked her once again as his pack and demonstrated to all demons with half a nose just whose protection she was under. Third, it reassured him that she was going to recover. In fact, he sniffed lightly, she was already nearly recovered, most likely due to Kagome's quick actions. Her heartbeat was already as strong as normal, and she would be fine once her body had rested and recovered from its ordeal.

He turned to the other human woman, the one who was currently lying limply in his arms. He hesitated only a fraction of a second before doing the same to her as he had done for Rin. He nuzzled both cheeks before running his clawed hands gently up and down her arms, paying close attention to her hands, which smelled most strongly like the mangy, thrice-bedamned cat.

Casting his senses about to make sure that no one would witness what he was about to do, he held up her hands to cup both sides of his face. He buried his nose in one of her palms and inhaled deeply of her scent, memorizing just how delicious and right it smelled when it mingled with his own.

When he heard the tiniest gasp escape from the miko's mouth, Sesshomaru knew that he had been caught. He opened his eyes languorously and looked into the wide, expressive eyes of this miko from another time who had so caught the attention of the mighty Western Lord.

"Se-Sessho-ma-ru?" she stuttered in a puff of voice. "Wha-what are you doing?"

The lie came easily. "I was trying to see if I could detect any scents other than the traitor's," he said in a disaffected tone. He held back an uncharacteristic urge to sigh in relief as she did not question it. Instead, she yelped at the sight of the corpse not two feet away from them.

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow at the stream of curse words that fell from her mouth. He drew them smoothly to their feet, pressing her body closer to him before reluctantly allowing her to go and check on Rin.

Kagome breathed a sigh of relief to hear her breathing normally and feel a strong pulse again. She turned back to Sesshomaru.

"What will happen to… that?" Kagome gestured with disgust towards the dead body.

A small snarl rose unbidden from Sesshomaru's chest, startling Kagome a little. "The traitor will be revived and interrogated for information on who gave him his orders."

Kagome gulped at the ferocity in his eyes, so different from the cold, aloof front that others were used to seeing. And yet, she could not deny that seeing him so feral and so decidedly masculine was utterly enthralling and sent a frisson of heat straight through her.

"Listen to me," Kagome lectured herself. "A demon tries to kill me and all I can think about is how sexy Sesshomaru looks right now. Wait, shit, did I just call him sexy? Ayaa, what is wrong with me?!"

To cover up the growing blush on her face, she busied herself by yanking out and cleaning up the daggers that were still protruding from the back of the dead cat demon. Her nose wrinkled slightly in disgust as she wiped the congealed blood off on one of Jun's sleeves.

Once she resheathed the daggers and got her face back under control, she turned to Sesshomaru and said, "so what now?"

As soon as the words left her lips, Shippo came into the room with Tenseiga in his hands. He wordlessly handed it over to Sesshomaru and then captured Kagome in a fierce hug. They went over to stand by Rin and then nodded that they were ready.

Sesshomaru grasped the Tenseiga firmly in his hand, waited for the underworld demons to appear, and then slashed downward to dispatch them.

Jun's lungs gasped painfully for air as he sprang to his feet and looked around at his surroundings in terrified confusion. When he caught sight of the fearsome Demon Lord of the West, he began transforming into his animal form, but Sesshomaru darted forward and caught him around the throat in mid-transformation.

His claws glowed bright green with poison, and acrid smell of singed hair began filling the room. The cat demon wheezed and began flailing in desperation to escape. Sesshomaru smiled ruthlessly, and the stench of terror flooded the room.

"Hello Jun."


	13. Chapter 13: Interrogation

**A/N:** As always, I apologize for the wait in between chapters. I am determined to finish this fanfiction, come hell or high water… it might just take a while haha. Enjoy!

 **Chapter 13: Interrogation**

It didn't take long for things to devolve.

Jun's yowls could be heard clear to the opposite end of the palace, and all who heard it found themselves waffling between feeling relief that they were not on the receiving end of what would surely be a brutal, drawn out vengeance and experiencing a vicious sense of righteousness that the traitor had been found.

In the room where said vengeance was being enacted, a puddle of blood, piss, and poison had begun gathering beneath the revived cat demon. Kagome tried and failed to repress the shudder of horror and disgust that ran through her at the thought of what was about to happen.

Sesshomaru could smell the bile rising in the back of his miko's throat. Without looking away from the piece of refuse that he held within his claws, he said, "kitsune. Take Kagome and RIn to the healers. Tell General Shou that we will be moving our… _guest_ ," his voice grew colder with each syllable," to more _secure_ quarters, and for him to assist me in escorting him." He allowed his fangs to elongate ever-so-slightly to jut out from his mouth, rearing his lips back in a slow snarl.

"Yes sir." Shippo jumped at the chance to get out of that room, scooping up the still-unconscious Rin with one arm and ushering Kagome out with the other.

In her early years in the Feudal Era, Kagome would have thrown a fit (both at being dismissed and in protest of the atrocities that even a fool could see was about to be unleashed upon an essentially unarmed man), but that was the old Kagome.

It wasn't necessarily that this Kagome had grown accustomed to the everyday violence. She still had a kinder heart than most.

Rather, it was that this Kagome understood what was at stake here. She knew that Sesshomaru could not afford to let his enemies free for any reason. For even though Inuyasha and she had acquired many charges and friends along the path to reuniting the Shikon Jewel, nothing could truly compare to the responsibility that came with being Lord of the entire Western Territories. Should he show Jun mercy and he return with information that could result in lives lost, then those lives were on Sesshomaru's head.

When she was just a young upstart, she could not have begun to comprehend the ruthlessness that was required of the young demon lord. She would have only seen the blood on his claws and the violence in his eyes. Now, however, she felt only concern that Jun would refuse to talk and that more attacks would ensue. As she took one last look inside the destroyed quarters, she released a small, but focused blast of miko energy towards the dangling double-crosser.

Kagome allowed herself a short burst of righteous anger as the yowling grew to greater heights. Then she quickly turned her focus to the dead guards outside her room.

"Do you think Sesshomaru can revive them?" Kagome asked sadly. It pained her to think that anyone had died for her, especially people that barely even knew her.

"I am not sure Mama," Shippo murmured. "I do not think that even Sesshomaru can have complete control over the Tenseiga. It seems to have a mind of its own. Let us just be thankful that he was able to revive Jun so we can get some answers out of him."

Kagome didn't reply. Instead, she knelt before each body, blessed their slain spirits, and thanked them for their sacrifice. With a sigh, she accepted a hand from Shippo to get back up. They walked down the halls without speaking, only the patter of their sandals and the quiet, steady woosh of Rin's breaths breaking the somber silence.

When they finally entered her quarters, Kagome crumpled to the floor onto one of the plush cushions that lay around the low table. Shippo wisely said nothing. He disappeared into the back room in order to lay Rin down on the futon. She didn't even look up at the telltale click of the bedroom door or the rustle of fabric as he settled down on the cushion next to her.

They sat there like that, neither of them willing to move or begin talking about the horror that had just unfolded, for what felt like hours, though it couldn't have been more than twenty minutes.

But kitsune were not known for their patience, and it was Shippo who caved first. He reached out to offer his mother a comforting pat on the back, when the dam burst and she flung herself into his arms, weeping as she hadn't since Inuyasha had been laid to rest.

"How many people have died for me, Shippo? How many more will die because I'm weak and useless? I should have been able to sense his intentions, I should- I should have…" her gut-wrenching sobs drowned out her grief-stricken ramblings.

"Hey hey, shhh," Shippo said as he made soothing circles on her back. "They were soldiers, they knew that their duty meant they were putting themselves in danger. And besides," he added hastily when her cries only became louder, "it was Jun that was the spy. He's the one who killed them. If he was trying to murder Rin to start a war, then he was going to kill anyone who interfered. One way or another, he was going to finish his task." Shippo grew thoughtful and nuzzled the top of his mama's head as Kagome began hiccuping and growing quieter. "One of the other guards told me that Jun has been around for centuries, so that means that he could have been plotting this for decades or even right from the beginning. Apparently he was brought here as a child after he was orphaned in a border skirmish."

Kagome sniffled, but her heart was still heavy for those poor guards. Still, a part of her acknowledged the truth in what Shippo had said. Sadly, if Rin and Kagome had remained in the village, there was no telling how many lives would have been lost in the path of his revenge (especially since Kagome would not have had the training to take the deranged healer by surprise as she did from staying with Sesshomaru).

"You're right, but I still hate that it happened," she replied after a short pause. "It was such a waste of life that could have been prevented. And now their families will suffer. What if they had children?

"Their families will be awarded large sums to compensate for the loss of their heads of house." A deep voice chimed in from the door that neither Kagome nor Shippo had heard open.

Kagome jumped to her feet in a strange mixture of relief, surprise, and anger. She put her hands on her hips and channelled all her frustration and helplessness into her rebuttal.

"You can't just throw money at people and expect that they will just get over losing their loved ones, Seshomaru!" Her normally warm eyes snapped and crackled with the fire of her indignation.

"And _you_ cannot assume that anyone mates for… love," he nearly sneered at the word, as if it were an unpleasant smell. Upon seeing her open her mouth to protest further, he softened his tone. "I do not know about in your time, but here we mate for power and honor, Kagome, not love. There is honor in dying to protect your lands and your lord. There is honor in providing for your family, even in death. Would you have me rob their families of this honor merely to satisfy your well-intentioned, yet ill-conceived notions of justice?"

Kagome stood there, gaping like a fish at this eloquent reply. She honestly hadn't thought about it that way before, and when he put it like that, it almost made her feel guilty for having protested in the first place. She closed her mouth and settled for a small "hmmph" just to have the last word in the discussion. It might have been petty, but she didn't care too much about being magnanimous just then. She sat back down and folded her hands primly in her lap.

"So, what did Jun say?" Kagome asked, noting Sesshomaru's deceptively pristine appearance. "Do we know who is behind the assassinations yet?" She tried to maintain an aura of nonchalance, but both Shippo and Sesshomaru could smell the lingering scent of salt and see the slight tremble of her lips.

Sesshomaru folded himself gracefully into the seat across from her. He leaned in slightly, his luminous hair falling neatly around his face like a deceptive waterfall whose beauty hid the danger that lurked beneath the surface.

Kagome and Shippo unconsciously found themselves mimicking the motion. Despite herself, Kagome couldn't help but notice the faint scent of Kiku (Chrysanthemum) flowers that wafted toward her. Shivering, she barely stopped herself from breathing in more deeply, as that was sure to cause some questions that she wasn't sure she had the answers to.

"Yes. He was sent from the East." The fire in Sesshomaru's normally icy tenor drew her attention away from the inappropriate and inconvenient feelings brewing in her belly.

"The East?" Kagome's eyebrows scrunched up in confusion. "But haven't the East and the West been fairly cordial for over a century?"

"Precisely," Sesshomaru replied, betraying none of his pride that she had learned as much as she had about the history and politics of his kingdom in a relatively short period of time. "However, it seems that there is an upstart demon that had been slinking in the shadows while Naraku was at the height of his power." He fought the urge to spit in disgust. If there was one thing that irked him, it was cowardice and those who chased false power. "Jun admitted to being fueled by hatred of my father, blaming him for the death of his family. He says that he knew the demon by no name other than master."

"Well isn't think good news?" Kagome said. That means we can go to the East, track this guy down, get rid of him, and come home to a safe palace." She didn't think it was possible for Sesshomaru to look even more serious than normal, but somehow his expression grew more grim.

"It is not that simple Mama," Shippo chimed in, to her surprise. "You cannot just go into another territory without permission, that is how wars get started. Demons do not care about what they see as a squabble between two individuals. If we were to be caught in the Eastern lands, Sesshomaru could be in big trouble, and they would have the right to attack any of us simply for being on their lands." The kitsune looked uncertainly at Lord Sesshomaru for confirmation, and was rewarded with the smallest of nods. "Which obviously, Sesshomaru could defeat any challenger with ease, so there would be no immediate danger, but each seemingly unjustified death would bring more retribution upon the Western lands."

"Also," Sesshomaru added, "it is unlikely that there is only one traitor in place at the palace. To leave Rin and the rest of the palace village unguarded would be exactly what the enemy would want us to do in our haste for revenge. We would be playing directly into their hands."

"Well what the hell are we gonna do then?" Kagome said, unconsciously channeling her inner Inuyasha. "Just sit around and wait for more people to die defending me?" The thought alone left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"Do not be foolish miko," Sesshomaru rebuked. "There is a meeting of the Lords in three moon's time that will be hosted at this very palace. Until that time, we will be looking to flush out any additional spies. Once the Lords convene, we bring up our grievances to the council and offer up Jun's confession as evidence."

"And then?" She asked.

"And then," Sesshomaru smirked. One glittering fang peeked out over his bottom lip, and Kagome felt a breath she didn't realize she was holding woosh out of her. "We fight to the death."

 **End Chapter 13**


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